A former chairman of AMPS has died after a long battle with cancer.

Gareth Marr passed away on Friday and leading Sipps expert John Moret says the industry owes him “a big debt” for helping to pave the way for Sipps.

John Moret, principal of MoretoSIPPs, and Sipps Professional columnist paid tribute to Mr Marr today.

He said: “I first met Gareth nearly 30 years ago – at the time he was in the vanguard of the development of SSASs and didn’t shirk confronting the regulators (HMRC) if he believed a cause was worth pursuing.

“He helped pave the way for the development of Sipps. Our paths crossed many times since then – he always had something interesting to say often humorous and quite often controversial. In all his various roles he was both entrepreneurial and flamboyant.

“He leaves a big gap –and many in the industry owe him a big debt as he helped shape the world of self invested pensions.”

He was heavily involved in regulation and policy in financial services, through various roles including as deputy chairman of city regulator FIMBRA and as chairman of the Association of Pensioneer Trustees (now AMPS).

Mr Marr had been living with throat cancer for over a decade and had undergone numerous operations and treatment.

Mr Moret said: “My last contact with him was some 18 months ago when I had hoped I could get him to speak at an after dinner event. Sadly he had to decline as his voice –which he described as a bit like “a whispering Barry White” – wasn’t up to it.”

Tributes have flowed in this morning for the well known adviser, who helped co-found Accredited Financial Planning Firm The Red House Consulting in 2007.

He founded his last business The Red House Consulting with long-term colleague Ruth Sturkey. Ms Sturkey announced the news on the company’s website.

She said: “It is with a heavy heart that I write to let you know that Gareth, my co-founder of The Red House and former business partner, mentor and friend passed away on Friday 27 May peacefully in his wife Jane’s arms.

“Gareth will be sorely missed by many but in particular his wife Jane and children Morgan and Sian. I will miss him, his optimism, his creativity, his lust for life and passion. Passion for his family, his many businesses, the people and causes he cared about, yoga and music.

“Gareth would not want us to be sad. He would want us to celebrate his life and get on and live our own lives to the full. For me, I am thankful for the fun and good times we shared, and all I learned from him. His memory will certainly live on.”

She said that he did everything in life with commitment and enthusiasm.

Retired adviser Harry Katz first came across Mr Marr in the late 1980s and early 1990s at industry events.

He said: “I thought he was a great bloke, he was one of the good guys. What always struck me is that he was one of the very early people to put clients at the centre of the proposition.

“He was very much in advance of a lot of the stuff that the RDR wanted to push, about 20 years in advance.

“He was one who dragged the industry away from the ‘get your foot in the door and flog it’ approach. He had a very good reputation and it was deserved.

“I took a lot of what he was saying on board myself and it certainly didn’t do me any harm. I was a fan and thought he always spoke a lot of sense, as shown by the quality of his clients that stayed with him.”

Geoff Mills, director at RSMR, said: “It was a pleasure to know him. We saw each other at industry events as you do and even though we had no business connections Gareth was always ‘the perfect gentleman’ and would make every effort to have a chat.”