The former finance minister of Great Britain, Lord Geoffrey Howe, died at the age of 88, the BBC reported today.
Howe, who was also foreign minister, died late last night, his family said.
British Prime Minister David Cameron paid tribute to Howe, who served as finance minister from 1979 to 1983, calling him a "quiet hero" of Margaret Thatcher's first government, Reuters reported.
"His time as Chancellor of the Exchequer was instrumental in turning around our country's finances, by halting borrowing, reducing tax rates and defeating inflation," Cameron said, adding that such moves "were revolutionary at the time".
Howe was the head of diplomacy from 1983 to 1989.
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