Obituary: Jimmy Jennings OBE, former steelworker who became leader of Europe's largest local authority Born: 18 February, 1925, in Kilbirnie. Died: 25 January, 2013, in Kilmarnock, aged 88 Jimmy Jennings, who has died at the age of 88, was a pillar of local government for 45 years and a distinguished convener of Strathclyde Regional Council, then Western Europe's largest local authority. Apart from unswerving devotion to his home patch in the Garnock Valley, Jimmy's particular involvement throughout his council career was with the police and he argued persuasively, under both Labour and Tory governments, in support of improvements to police pay and conditions. Sir John Orr, a former Chief Constable of Strathclyde, said: "As chairman of the police negotiating board, Jimmy was massively influential in improving the conditions of the job, not just in Scotland but throughout the UK. He was an unusual politician, with no airs and graces, who really understood the police and cared deeply about the situation of the ordinary police officer. Jimmy's roots were in Kilbirnie and his Who's Who entry summed up the reason for his political longevity. Under "recreation," he listed simply "local community involvement" and this was reflected in the roles he fulfilled with a host of local organisations associated with the public good. For most of the 20th century, employment in that part of Ayrshire revolved around the Glengarnock steel works. Jimmy's father was a steelworker who had fought at the Somme and often woke up screaming as the nightmares recurred. There's was a deprived community and the social conditions visited tragedy upon the family. Of Jimmy's three siblings, two died from conditions associated with poverty - the brother to whom he was particularly close from meningitis and an infant sister from tuberculosis. It was these circumstances that forged his very fundamental brand of socialism; essentially it was about improving conditions and opportunities for the people from whom he came. He attended St Palladius School in Dalry and then St Michael's in Irvine. The inevitable transition to steelworker was delayed by war. In 1943, Jimmy passed an exam to become a fighter pilot but since this was going to delay his entry to the RAF, he joined as a wireless operator, serving mainly in the Far East. On his return, Jimmy joined the steelworks, the union and the Labour Party. He was employed at Glengarnock for 33 years until shortly before the closures which eventually led to termination of the local steel industry. In 1958, he had taken his first steps into local government being elected to represent Kilbirnie on Ayrshire County Council. Six years later, he was appointed chairman of the police and law committee. In 1970 he became chairman of Ayrshire joint police committee and then, when regionalisation took effect, he was the first chairman of Strathclyde police and fire committee. After eight years as Vice-Convener and then Convener, he resumed the police and fire chairmanship and held it until Strathclyde was dissolved in 1996. This immense experience of the police service made him an influential contributor to two major reviews of police pay and conditions. The first was under Lord Edmund-Davies, who was appointed by the Labour Home Secretary, Merlyn Rees, and whose report in 1978 led to substantial improvements. Then there was Sir Patrick Sheehy's report, a decade later, under Mrs Thatcher, when Jimmy was heading the employers" side in national negotiations. As Convener of Strathclyde, Jimmy saw his role as being largely ambassadorial and he embraced. An imposing figure, he graced a vast range of official events and hosted innumerable visits by international dignitaries - always with good humour and a common touch. At his funeral service, his son James - himself a senior police officer with Strathclyde - told the story of his father's encounter with the Duke of Edinburgh at the 1986 Commonwealth Games. The Duke had been critical of public money being used to bail out the financially troubled Games. Both he and dad were tasked with presenting medals at the rowing. Pleasantries were exchanged and Prince Philip said: "Convener, don't you think this is a waste of public money?" Dad nodded and replied: "Just like yourself."" It was entirely believable since Jimmy had a knack for getting away with the quick riposte. When the ceremonials were over, Jimmy was most likely to be found calling the bingo at Kilbirnie Labour Club or standing on the terraces to watch Kilbirnie Ladeside junior football team. He was an honorary vice-president of the Scottish Junior Football Association, a Justice of the Peace and an honorary sheriff as well as being made the first freeman of North Ayrshire in 1997 and awarded an OBE in 1998. Jimmy might have bowed out of local government in 1996 when Strathclyde Region ceased to exist but opted to fight what was generally regarded as an unwinnable seat for Labour on the new North Ayrshire authority. He duly won and then held the seat at the subsequent election before finally retiring from elected office in 2003, just short of his 80th birthday. Sir John Orr recalled that he was a young constable in Monkton when he first met Jimmy Jennings. At that time, the police committee chairman would inspect police houses to make sure they were up to scratch. From that day, I found him very understanding, someone who would try do deliver what he promised, always eager to embrace new developments. He didn't just talk about community. It was not some plastic word. He really did care about community and believed that it was where politics began and should make a difference. The leader of the Labour group on North Ayrshire Council, Peter McNamara, said: "As a worker on behalf of his community, there was none better than Jimmy Jennings. He held many posts but none was more important to him than being the local councillor. Jimmy married twice. He was widowed in the early 1970s and his second wife, Greta, also pre-deceased him. He is survived by five children from his first marriage and two from his second.