Politician Mo Mowlam honoured with blue plaque

Former Northern Ireland secretary Mo Mowlam has been honoured with a blue plaque at her former school.

The plaque at Coundon Court School in Coventry has been put in place by the Coventry Society.

The former Labour politician, who died in 2005, played a key role in the negotiations leading to the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement, which brought an end to 30 years of conflict in Northern Ireland, known as the Troubles.

School principal Chris Heal said the plaque was an inspiration to students, showing them that "you can go on to achieve anything".

Mowlam attended the school from 1962 to 1968. She went on to become MP for Redcar in North Yorkshire and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 1997 to 1998.

She died in hospital following a fall, having been diagnosed with a brain tumour some years before.

The plaque was unveiled by journalist and Mowlam's autobiographer, Julia Langdon, who said: "She knew she wanted to go into politics and she knew she wanted to make a difference".

She said Mowlam was "a very determined woman" and the Good Friday agreement would not have been achieved without her contribution.

The idea to put the plaque up at Coundon School came from former Coventry teacher, Jane Railton, who attended the unveiling ceremony.

"It would be an inspiration to the students here that they would recognise her name and be aware of the importance of her work in politics," she said.

Peter Walters from the Coventry Society said Mowlam went to the Maze prison near Belfast to talk to the paramilitaries on both sides, and "it was a key moment that they accepted there was a peace deal to be done and... we should all remember Mo Mowlam for that."

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