BARNSLEY MPs Dan Jarvis and John Healey have paid tribute to the Queen for her ‘tireless service’ which included a host of stop-offs in the town during her 70-year reign.

In 1954, the new Queen visited Barnsley for the first time, walking through streets lined with people hoping to catch a glimpse on her way to the town hall.

She later met with a miner and a glass maker as representatives from the key industries in Barnsley, and was given a piece of coal from a Barnsley colliery to mark the occasion.

She visited the town again in 1975, and to celebrate her Silver Jubilee in 1977, the Metrodome in 1991 and Elsecar in 1996.

Dan, who represents Barnsley Central, said: “For the great majority of people in Barnsley, her presence is all we have ever known.

“I know from the conversations I have been having that there is a sense of deep and personal loss in our town and across the country, so profound that it will take time to mourn and to come to terms with.

“We have been honoured to welcome Her Majesty the Queen to Barnsley on numerous occasions but it was her steadfast commitment to duty and loyalty, her belief in peace and prosperity both at home and overseas, and her devotion to her family that guided us though immeasurable change.

“Her life was best defined by one word - duty. With this new era, the torch has been handed to a new monarch, his too a life of service, and that sense of duty will continue to burn brightly.”

John, who represents Wentworth and Dearne, laid flowers outside Buckingham Palace.

He added: “This is the moment we knew must come but never wanted. The Queen dedicated her whole life to serving the people of the United Kingdom, and the country is now in mourning at our loss.

“I laid flowers and paid respects to the Queen at Buckingham Palace gates on behalf of constituents in Wentworth and Dearne - I know this is what so many would want to do today, but can’t.”