An old and trusted former colleague of mine, Jim Mason, sadly passed away over the Christmas period. A Labour Party stalwart since the 1930′s, I got to know Jim well during my time on Lancashire County Council, and served as his Vice Chairman on the Lancashire Enterprises board in 1997, before taking over as Chairman the following year.
Jim was instrumental in establishing Lancashire Enterprises, an innovative local government initiative in the 80′s that has been copied by many local council’s since. It literally created, saved and supported thousands of local businesses and jobs during its time.
Jim was a man who loved life and lived it to the full. He had a tremendous passion for Lancashire and contributed enormously to the county’s economic growth, paticularly during his involvement at Enterprises. He will be greatly missed by all who knew him.