Former political editor of the Birmingham Mail Stanley Sparks OBE has died at the age of 75.

He died at St Thomas’s hospital in London after suffering an aneurysm.

Stanley began his career in 1960 when he joined the Mail’s London office as an industrial correspondent.

Four years later he moved to the London Evening News.

One year later, in 1965, he returned to the Evening Mail as a political correspondent, and soon after he was appointed political editor.

In 1992 he received an OBE for his service to journalism.

His “standards of integrity, accuracy and probity” were recognized at a retirement motion in the House of Commons a year later.

Lord Rooker said: “He was a star. He was an old school journalist. He was bloody good.”

Robert Gibson, chairman of the parliamentary press gallery plans to talk about Stanley at a lunch in the House of Commons. Publicist Max Clifford is to be the guest of honour.