A BRITISH political campaigner died in a seaplane crash in Australia on New Year’s Eve alongside his relatives and the pilot.

Will Cousins, the 25-year-old head of press for Open Britain, which campaigns to keep Britain tied into the EU’s single market, died alongside his father Richard and brother Edward. Emma Bowden, who was Richard’s fiancee, her daughter Heather, and Sydney Seaplanes pilot Gareth Morgan were also killed.

The group were on a return flight to Rose Bay, close to Sydney Harbour, when the small aircraft apparently nose-dived into the Hawkesbury River off Jerusalem Bay, 25 miles north of Sydney city centre on Sunday afternoon. The company has suspended its flights while the crash is investigated.

Labour MPs such as Chris Leslie, Mary Creagh, Wes Streeting and Alison McGovern said Mr Cousins, who worked on the Remain campaign during the referendum, was an “absolute joy” to work with.