Tributes were paid to Dame Cheryl Gillan in the House of Commons this week.

The Conservative MP for Chesham and Amersham sadly died over the Easter weekend from a long illness, prompting an outpouring of tributes from the community.

Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle said on Tuesday in the Commons that Mrs Gillan made an “outstanding contribution” in her 30 years as an MP, adding she was a “doughty defender of her constituents’ interests”.

He said: “Cheryl was a member of this House for nearly 30 years.

“In that time, she made an outstanding contribution from both the back benches and the front Benches, and as the first woman to be appointed as Secretary of State for Wales.

“She was a doughty defender of her constituents’ interests, most notably in her long campaign against the High Speed 2 rail line, and she was the champion of the private Member’s Bill that led to the Autism Act 2009.

“Above all, she will be remembered as a friend and mentor to many Members—especially new members—on all sides of the House.”

Aylesbury MP Rob Butler said Dame Cheryl had a “profound impact” on him despite his “very brief time in politics”.

He said: “I first met her when she came to Aylesbury to help me campaign from her neighbouring constituency. We had HS2 in common.

“With her was her much loved dog, Jimmy, who brought her so much joy after the loss of her husband.

“Cheryl walked the streets with me, she shared a choice comment or two with a heckler in the post office, and then she sat down with me in a pub to tell me what was what.

“Despite having known me for barely an hour, she offered me space in her office were I to be elected.

“She was as good as her word: in my first month here, I camped out alongside her, benefitting not just from a desk and some space, but from her wisdom.”

He added: “Dame Cheryl cared. She cared profoundly for her constituents, she cared for fellow members of this House, and she cared greatly for her staff, and they cared greatly for her.

“It is my honour to have been asked to work with them in the coming weeks.”

Sir Bernard Jenkin, Conservative MP for Harwich and North Essex, described her as an “exemplary employer” to her staff “who were devoted to her”.

He added: “She was terrific fun and, as has been said, she was a champion of women in politics. When she lost her beloved husband Jack, she raised a fund in his memory for Women2Win, which has helped promote more women into Parliament, as a mark of how much he had supported her in her political career.”

He also called for a new campaign called “Cheryl’s vote” which would allow proxy voting for MPs “incapacitated” by illness, as Mrs Gillan was, adding that her “failing health and then cancer were particularly bitter for her” because of this.