Robin Cook died of hypertensive heart disease, the Crown Office said today, after a post-mortem examination at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness.

Mr Cook, 59, the former Foreign Secretary, collapsed while walking in the Highlands on Saturday and was pronounced dead after being airlifted to hospital.

A Crown Office statement said: "The procurator fiscal for Tain and Dornoch can confirm that a post-mortem examination following the death of Robin Cook MP has established the cause of death as hypertensive heart disease.

"Next of kin has been informed of the cause of death, and a death certificate has now been issued."

Hypertensive heart disease is a late complication of high blood pressure, which increases the workload of the heart and over time can cause thickening of the heart muscle.

As the heart continues to pump against the raised blood pressure, the left ventricle becomes enlarged, and the amount of blood pumped by the heart goes down.

In Britain, medical experts say hypertensive heart disease is the most common cause of heart failure after coronary heart disease due to smoking, alcohol and obesity.

Tony Blair has paid tribute to Mr Cook, praising him as an "outstanding, extraordinary talent", while his successor as Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, hailed him as "the greatest parliamentarian of his generation".

But today Mr Blair came under attack from a close friend of Mr Cook for not planning to attend the funeral. John McCririck, the Channel 4 racing pundit who has been friends with Mr Cook for 20 years, accused the Prime Minister of snubbing the family and the memory of Mr Cook.

Mr McCririck will be among those speaking at the funeral service, which will take place at 11am on Friday at St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh. Gordon Brown is expected to read the main eulogy, and the former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright hopes to attend.

Downing Street has said that Mr Blair is unlikely to break off from his holiday for the funeral and his deputy, John Prescott, is likely to attend instead. Mr Blair may attend a memorial service later in the year.

Mr McCririck said today: "It is contemptible that the Prime Minister cannot be bothered to sacrifice just 24 hours from his holiday to pay his, and the nation’s tribute to Robin. It is a deliberate, selfish snub to the family, millions of new Labour supporters, and the memory of a man who did so much to bring about his premiership."

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