David Hencke, the acclaimed Guardian journalist who uncovered the cash-for-questions scandal and broke the story that led to Peter Mandelson's first resignation, has died of liver cancer at the age of 79.
Career spanning more than three decades
Hencke joined the Guardian as a reporter in 1976, later becoming Westminster correspondent, a role he held until 2009. He then continued as an investigative journalist. His work earned him a reputation as one of Fleet Street's most formidable political reporters.
Guardian editor-in-chief Katharine Viner described him as "a true Fleet Street legend" who "was responsible for breaking some of the biggest political stories of the time." She added: "David became the most feared journalist in Westminster because of his acute nose for political scandal and wrongdoing."
Cash-for-questions scandal
In 1994, Hencke was named reporter of the year for his coverage of the cash-for-questions scandal, which exposed Conservative MPs accepting payments to ask parliamentary questions. The story heightened public awareness of Tory sleaze in the 1990s and became a key issue at the 1997 general election, which ended 18 years of Conservative rule.
The scandal forced the resignations of ministers Neil Hamilton and Tim Smith. Smith stepped down as an MP, while Hamilton was defeated by journalist Martin Bell, who stood on an anti-corruption platform.
Mandelson scoop
Hencke won scoop of the year in 1998 for revealing that Peter Mandelson had received a secret £373,000 home loan from his government colleague Geoffrey Robinson. The loan enabled Mandelson to buy his £475,000 home in Notting Hill.
Francis Beckett, a journalist who co-wrote three books with Hencke, recalled: "David discovered early in life something he loved doing and was very good at. And he was a lucky man; he was able to do it for all of his working life. And what he loved was finding things out that rich and powerful people didn't want us to know, and telling us."
Relentless until the end
Beckett noted Hencke's relaxed demeanour: "He looked and sounded completely harmless. If I had been a politician with a secret and I had looked at David, I can perfectly well imagine I would have confided in him."
Hencke was still working on a story until a week before his death on Friday. "That was what he loved doing," Beckett said.
