Cllr Shantanu Rajawat, Leader of Hounslow Council, released the following statement on behalf of the Labour Group:
“It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Councillor Richard Foote, Labour Councillor for Hanworth Village Ward.
“We would like to send our thoughts and deepest sympathies to his friends, family and loved ones, and to join with others in praise of Richard as both a tireless local champion and a good friend to us all.
“Councillor Richard Winston Foote was born in Hanworth in 1943 and identified as a democratic socialist from the age of sixteen. He joined the Transport and General Workers Union at eighteen and supported union members at both Heathrow and Gatwick Airport.
“He served as secretary of the Feltham Branch and was later the election agent for the successful campaigns of both Russell Kerr MP and Tony Banks, as a member of the Greater London Council.
“Richard was always passionate about serving residents in his home of Hanworth, and his dedication to his local community should be a model for any local councillor.
“Cllr Foote was first elected to represent Hanworth Village Ward in 1968, serving on the Council until 1974. As Chair of the Housing Committee, he set up Housing Advisory Committees, which were rare at the time. He was also proud to have overseen the building of a record number of council houses during that period.
“After a forty-year career with British Airways, Richard returned to the Council in 2014 – again to serve the Hanworth home he loved so much.
“Cllr Foote served as Vice Chair of Overview and Scrutiny, Chair of Hanworth Area Forum and as a member of the Planning Committee.
“All local Councillors take great pride in the areas they are elected to represent. Few could hold a candle to the devotion showed by Richard to the place he took such pride in calling home.
“Among all of us in the Hounslow Labour community, he will be much missed.”