Tracy Brabin applauded as she praises Jo Cox during maiden Commons speech
Newly elected MP Tracy Brabin was applauded by MPs after using her maiden Commons speech to pay tribute to the late Jo Cox.
Former Coronation Street actress Brabin won the seat of Batley and Spen after the death of Mrs Cox in June at the hands of a gunman forced a by-election.
Labour's Brabin triumphed last month with a landslide 86% of votes after the Tories, Lib Dems and Ukip decided not to put up candidates out of respect to Mrs Cox.
In the Commons on Wednesday, Brabin paid tribute to her friend Mrs Cox, describing her as an "inspiration".
Labour's newest MP said the killing of Mrs Cox, which happened just days after the EU referendum outside her surgery, will "stay with everyone" in her constituency for the rest of their lives.
But she said defiantly: "Batley and Spen will not be defined by the one person who took from us, but by the many who give".
She also praised the political parties who opted not to stand in the by-election.
"I wasn't elected in a conventional way, and it was in the darkest of circumstances through the loss of my friend and inspiration, Jo Cox, that I came to be here", she said.
"What happened wasn't only an attack on a woman, family and a community, it was an assault on the principles and basis of our democracy".
Brabin later promised: "I will stand tall against those whose only mission is to divide our community".