Very sad to hear of  the death of Maurice Stonefrost this morning. He was the father of a close friend and was probably my most influential acquaintance.  He rose through the ranks of local authority finance from Bristol and West Sussex to command the GLC before it was annihilated by Thatcher. He was a trusted advisor to the Labour party and pension funds. He did great deals for these institutions when they were facing hard times. The archives will remember him for these achievements but I will remember him as someone who managed to rise to the top of the only game worth playing. He built a network of influence and fun that helped and benefited many that never knew his name.

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