Consumer champion dies aged 55

Dame Sheila McKechnie, one of Britain's most ardent champions of people's rights, has died aged 55.

Dame Sheila, who was director of the Consumers Association, had been fighting cancer since 1997. She continued working right to the end.

She became director of the association in January 1995 and later president of the European consumer umbrella body, BEUC, after nearly a decade as director of Shelter, the national campaign for homeless people.

In 1995, she was awarded an OBE in recognitionof her services to housing and for the homeless, and she became a Dame in 2001 for her work for consumers.

"She leaves this world having made a difference to the lives of some of society's most vulnerable people," said an association spokesman. "She was never afraid to make a stand against the corporate and political establishment." Dame Sheila, born in Falkirk, studied politics and history at Edinburgh University before gaining an MA in industrial relations at Warwick University.

Chancellor Gordon Brown, who had known Dame Sheila for 35 years since her university days, said: "She was truly a champion of people's rights. Throughout her career, starting in the trade union movement, she constantly challenged organisations to put the rights of people at the centre of their mission.

"No one will forget her unfailing support for great and noble causes, even as her health deteriorated. She will be sorely missed."