RIP Jo Cox

"I had only known Jo for a year. We first met in the queue to buy coffee shortly after she had been elected. As we chatted about superficial stuff I asked her how she was finding being an MP. Her face dropped: "pretty overwhelming" was her reply. Parliament is overwhelming, especially if, like me and Jo, you come from a working-class family, went to a state school and are not part of a political dynasty. We sat down and drank our coffee together, sharing stories, laughing at some of the madness around us and offering support and guidance to each other.

Jo was passionate about creating a more fair society. She became an MP to change the world, to make it more just, to protect the vulnerable and especially to change the way we treated the people of Syria. It was over Syria that I realised she was a remarkable woman, not simply a lovely one.

Jo had seen at first-hand the atrocities, on both sides, that were being carried out against the people of Syria. She was hugely frustrated that Parliament was not recognising the mass torture, murder and abuse that was happening to innocent people. Why were we not intervening to stop this?

Jo was a practical woman. She thought through the best way to get Parliament to listen and doggedly went for it. She asked questions of the Prime Minister, wrote articles, formed strategic alliances and ultimately, shaped the whole debate around UK intervention in the crisis. What an incredible achievement for one woman after only six months of her appointment. I can't tell you how much I will miss her and how deeply, deeply sorry I am for the loss of a daughter, wife and mother. Let us all do an act of kindness in her honour so her vision for a better world can live on."