Never mind his life; important questions must be asked about Leon Brittan’s death

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Why would the police be called to Leon Brittan’s home if he was succumbing after a long battle with cancer?

And why would a post-mortem examination be required? Post-mortems, or autopsies, are carried out on the orders of a coroner to determine the cause of death – in order to inform a decision on whether to hold an inquest. This is in cases where the cause of death is unknown, or in the event of a sudden, violent or unexpected death.

None of those would apply to a case in which the deceased died of cancer – would they?

Lord Brittan died on Wednesday aged 75. He was a key figure in Margaret Thatcher’s government and later a European Commissioner – but recently faced questions over his handling of child abuse allegations, centring on a dossier on alleged high-profile paedophiles handed to him in the early 1980s by former Conservative MP Geoffrey Dickens.

Is there more to his death than we’re being told?

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23 Comments

  1. Kay January 25, 2015 at 4:45 pm - Reply

    Dunno – I was of the understanding that if someone died other than in a hospital then there was always an inquest and post mortem anyway?

    • Mike Sivier January 25, 2015 at 6:43 pm - Reply

      Well, the rules for holding a post-mortem are as explained in the article (I took them from the NHS website).

  2. Niki January 25, 2015 at 5:06 pm - Reply

    Have you read Exaro? Hard to know what to think…..

    • Mike Sivier January 25, 2015 at 6:42 pm - Reply

      No – I don’t always get notification of posts. Do you have a link?

  3. Joan Edington January 25, 2015 at 6:40 pm - Reply

    Suicide, realising he could well be rumbled?

  4. justme75 January 25, 2015 at 6:43 pm - Reply

    If the deceased has not seen a doctor in relation for a certain amount of time before they die, the death has to be reported to the coroner to decide if a post mortem or further investigation is required, which may be what is happening here … I know because it happened to my grandfather who died in a care home of known illnesses, but who hadn’t actually been seen by a doctor for some time.

    • Mike Sivier January 25, 2015 at 6:55 pm - Reply

      My experience of cancer care (as an observer, not a sufferer) suggests that someone with the disease is more likely to have been seen by a doctor recently than not.

    • Mike Sivier January 25, 2015 at 8:25 pm - Reply

      Thanks. Oh, it’s just the police investigation.

  5. hstorm January 25, 2015 at 6:56 pm - Reply

    The police had to come to my home the day my father died of heart failure, and he’d had a known heart condition for about seven years, so it’s not that odd that they showed up.

    • Mike Sivier January 25, 2015 at 8:26 pm - Reply

      Without prejudice regarding whether the police should have turned up or not, that still leaves the post-mortem.

  6. Mr.Angry January 25, 2015 at 7:35 pm - Reply

    The mind boggles do we remember the strange death of Dr.Kelly preceding the Iraqi invasion? Food for thought !! what.

    • Florence January 26, 2015 at 1:47 pm - Reply

      John Smith (Labour Leader) and Robin Cook were deaths that were unexpected, and somehow very useful to remove strong Labour voices.

  7. Claire January 25, 2015 at 8:46 pm - Reply

    Post mortems are always carried out when someone dies outside of hospital when there is no doctor in attendance and the police are always called to any death that occurs outside of a hospital. Both are standard procedure.

    • Mike Sivier January 25, 2015 at 9:46 pm - Reply

      According to both the government and the NHS, that’s not right. A coroner may order a post-mortem if unsatisfied that the cause of death is clear. We’ve been told it was cancer – prematurely, it seems.
      I can’t find anything to say that police must attend any death outside of a hospital. I can see the logic of it but none of the documentation I’ve found suggests it’s mandatory. Of course, official sites seem to be designed to foil internet searches.

  8. Jane Jacques January 25, 2015 at 9:51 pm - Reply

    Although he had cancer it may not be obvious what the cause of his death was, hence the need for a PM if this is true. There is nothing suspicious in this. eg blood clot, heart attack etc. I think the families privacy should be respected.

  9. Sherrie Oliver January 25, 2015 at 9:53 pm - Reply

    I have cancer which is terminal and was discussing the post mortem thing with one of the medical professionals I deal with. Apparently it’s not unusual for there to be a post when someone dies from cancer even if they die in hospital or a hospice. Absolutely not what I wanted to hear.

    • beastrabban January 26, 2015 at 2:36 pm - Reply

      Really sorry to hear of your terrible condition. My thoughts are with you.,

  10. alistair lazenby January 26, 2015 at 1:04 pm - Reply

    He escaped, thank’s to cameron, but know his family will have a saville on them, cameron you are a stalling b*****d, who are you protecting now…..yourself maybe, gideon terresa william the list can go on, the more you protect and stall, the list will grow ….n***-n**s

  11. alistair lazenby January 26, 2015 at 1:06 pm - Reply

    COULD suicide be a factor here ?

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