A MEMORIAL bench has been unveiled to honour a late MP at his favourite beauty spot.

Dr Ashok Kumar, MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, died suddenly earlier this year.

A bench facing the sea at Saltburn’s Upper Parade has been dedicated in his memory.

Tom Blenkinsop, a former employee of Dr Kumar, was selected to replace the MP as Labour’s candidate in May’s General Election.

The idea for the seat was suggested by Dr Kumar’s close friends, who knew he loved this part of his constituency, said Mr Blenkinsop, former campaign manager with steel union, Community.

He said: “This memorial will be a fitting tribute to Ashok and his work for his constituency and his people.

“I spoke at Labour’s annual conference last week about how much I had learned from Ashok when I worked with him and when, later, we were all fighting to save our steel industry – an issue which was very close to Ashok’s heart as a former British Steel employee.”

He added: “It is a great honour to walk in the footsteps of someone I saw as my mentor.”

Dr Kumar, 53, who had suffered from heart disease, was found dead at his constituency home in Marton, Middlesbrough on March 15. He worked as a research scientist for British Steel before being elected as an MP in 1991.

As only the fifth MP of Asian origin to be voted into Parliament since the end of the Second World War, Dr Kumar’s first spell in Parliament proved short lived. He lost the seat in the 1992 General Election, but was re-elected in 1997 to the newlycreated Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency.

His brother, Ravi, said: “He told us how much he loved all communities in his constituency, but that his favourite spot, a place he went nearly every weekend, was Saltburn’s promenade and seafront.

“The fact this bench will be sited there adds a human dimension to his work as a local MP and testifies to his deep affection to the area where he became rooted and lived his adult life.”