MY friend Roy Burgess, who has died aged 83, was a Labour councillor on Tyneside for 25 years and was Lord Mayor of Newcastle in 1985.

Most readers won’t have known Roy, but politically he achieved much, helping, in difficult times, to lift Newcastle to become the vibrant city it is today, while remaining a devoted family man and working tirelessly for workmates and the people of his area.

I just hope people can resist unquestioning cynicism about politicians and “the system” and I hope we can remember Roy, and the hundreds of good men and women up and down the region who are like him and who never lose sight of exactly who it is they are elected to serve and who prove, over and over, that honest working people can govern and govern well.

Brian Dixon, Darlington.