Yesterday I was up in Edinburgh. As usual I flew Easyjet from Luton Airport, as this is easy, cheap and convenient. I took the 17.55 flight back and by 19.15 I was back at Luton Airport Parkway station. Sadly whilst the flight was seamless, I arrived to find a scene of chaos at the station. The notice boards were simply saying that there were problems. There were no announcements and people were completely in the dark as to when or even if a train was coming. I waited for nearly half an hour and eventually I went back to the office. I spoke to a Thameslink employee who informed me that there would be a train to London in three minutes (19:46), so I made my way back to the platform. Sure enough at 19:46 there was a train to London. It sped straight through at 100mph despite the indicators saying it would stop. At this I gave up and got a cab back, costing me £35 despite having a ticket.
The cause of the problem was a fatality at Hendon. Now I understand that such things happen and the line may need to be closed. What I don't accept is that companies such as Thameslink, which make millions of pounds of profit, should be allowed to leave people high and dry. There is no excuse for the lack of announcements. As the blockage was at Hendon, why couldn't they run a shuttle to Mill Hill and then let people transfer to buses to get to the Northern Line? This would not be great, but it is better than nothing at all, which is what we got. That would also allow people travelling from London to St Albans and Luton to get home.
There seems to be contingency plans of any sort for any problems. the network simply grinds to a halt and people end up being stuck.
I had hoped to attend the hustings in Mill Hill. I made it for the last few questions. The last one was about Thameslink. Andrew Dismore proposed that the line become part of the London Underground. This is a sensible suggestion. Matthew Offord who previously has been a fan of privatisation and Govia accepted that the service is awful, although did not seem to have a plan.
The chaos is a direct result of the John Major Conservative government and its crazy rail privatisation program. Sadly neither the Labour Blair/Brown govt or the Coalition have done anything to fix the problems. All that happen is that foreign companies rake in huge profits and passengers suffer. When considering your vote, consider Thameslink. If we can get it sorted out, thousands of commuters will benefit. Dismores plan to bring Thameslink under the London Mayor and London Underground will at least give some democratic accountability to the network. Since taking over the North London Line, services have improved considerably. Matthew Offord needs to get a plan together urgently if he wants to be considered a credible candidate.
Showing posts with label Matthew Offord. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Matthew Offord. Show all posts
Thursday, 23 April 2015
Monday, 20 April 2015
Tory Councillors abandon Matthew Offord and Mike Freer to their fate
I am truly bemused as to the behaviour of some of our local Tory Councillors in respect to the two local Tory MP's currently involved in a massive battle to retain their parliamentary seats. In years gone by, the Tories would have thrown the kitchen sink at the job, but they just don't seem to be bothered. At time (noon Sunday) of writing a quick trawl of twitter reveals the following
Leader of the Council Richard Cornelius
https://twitter.com/CllrCornelius
No Tweets at all about the general election campaign
Deputy Leader of the Council Daniel Thomas
https://twitter.com/TrueBlueBarnet
No tweets for Mike Freer or Matthew Offord this month
Senior Councillor David Longstaffe
2 retweets this month mentioning Mike Freer
https://twitter.com/David_Longstaff
New Hampstead Garden Suburb Councillor Gabriel Rozenberg
One retweet of a Boris video supporting Matthew Offord and one tweet promoting Andrew Dismore?? as best as I can tell
https://twitter.com/rozgab
Mayor of Barnet Hugh Rayner
No tweets on election. May be due to ceremonial role of Mayor?
https://twitter.com/50MayorofBarnet/with_replies
It seems that the Barnet Tories have no interest at all in social media. Is it because they don't understand it or are just scared to death of saying stupid things? I find it massively disheartening that the local Conservatives are completely shunning the opportunity to engage with the electorate in this manner. If I were running their campaign I'd insist that all councillors had twitter accounts and as a very minimum retweeted key points of interest to their friends and followers.
In my street (Millway, NW7), in the 1970's and 1980's elections we'd see dozens of boards at the top end of the road (where the richer people live) with the "It's Gorst of Course" message on promoting the local, well liked ex MP John Gorst. We'd get knocked up at least 3 or 4 times and there would be a Tory stall every week on Mill Hill Broadway.
What we now see is a largely geriatric party, which has no desire to get out and engage with younger voters or develop new channels to get their message across. The only semi active Tory COuncillor who blogs is Cllr Dan Thomas - http://truebluedanthomas.blogspot.co.uk/ - who hasn't bothered to post a blog since January. Does he feel that the Tory MP's are so toxic that he doesn't want to associate with them.
In the whole of Barnet, the only active Tory blogger is maverick ex Councillor Daniel Hope, who writes the Barnet Bugle blog. Hope fell out with the local party when he was deselected in Brunswick Park in 2006. Given hs history with Freer and Offord it is unsurprising that he is less than enthusiastic about their campaigns. Hope turned up at the FSB business breakfast at Cafe Buzz with his video camera, but no footage of Mike Freer has made it onto his blog. One has to wonder whether this was because he thought it would be unhelpful to Freer to list him talking about cheese liberalisation and that he thought the UK would vote to stay in the EU? Only Dan can tell us and he's keeping his counsel (unusually).
On a more general note, it is interesting to see that the majority of tweets expressing a genuine interest in Freer are from the LBGT community - https://twitter.com/search?f=realtime&q=freer4fgg&src=typd - which Mike has done an excellent job in representing. It is telling that nearly all pictures etc of Freer are shown with the same rather small band of supporters.
Matthew Offords general twitter coverage has been slightly more interesting - https://twitter.com/search?f=realtime&q=offord4hendon&src=typd - with a few decent pictures in pubs pulling pints etc and his dog seems to be a real winner in the engagement stakes.
One has to wonder just what is going on at a national level with the Conservative Campaign. This is being overseen by alleged election guru Lynton Crosby. Given that both Hendon and Finchley changed hands at the last election, one would assume that they should be considered marginals. The Conservative party is a well funded organisation and I know that whenever I've run a campaign there are certain basics that you observe. One of these is to ensure that you use whatever tools you have at your disposal. Getting your local councillors (who get a minimum bung of £10K from the taxpayer, purley because they wear your rosette) to support the campaign is surely a complete no brainer.
The fact of the matter is that the Tories should be continually tweeting that they are canvassing in certain roads, getting pictures of smiling members of the public, quotes saying how marvellous they've been, smiling councillors with the MPs etc. Social media is free, so it is exempt from campaign rules. Clever messages can go viral and can reach place in ten minutes that a week of door knocking won't achieve.
If the local Tories wake up in May to an electoral route, they have only themselves to blame. Both Matthew Offord and Mike Freer have been busier blocking people such as me on Twitter than they have in promoting their message. Their stance is idiotic, as probably at least 40% of people who follow my twitter account and blog locally are Conservatives. They often don't agree with what I have to say, but they value the fact that I raise local issues. By refusing to engage with me (and even the Tory leaning Barnet Bugle) they are missing a huge opportunity to get people involved in their campaign.
When I look at the current Conservative election campaign, it reminds me of a conversation I had with an IBM mainframe computer salesman in 1984. He told me that IBM would always be the worlds largest computer company because corporations always consider the FUD factor when buying. I was bemused. "What was FUD?" I asked. He replied "Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt". He explained that in corporate computing anything except IBM was a risk.
What he didn't realise was that the world of computing was evolving. Now when we talk about IT we talk about Google and Microsoft as the big players. IBM still make mainframes for corporations, but the world of IT has long since passed them by and they are bit part niche players. I suspect that with the Tories head in the sand attitude, they will have to evolve or face the same fate.
Leader of the Council Richard Cornelius
https://twitter.com/CllrCornelius
No Tweets at all about the general election campaign
Deputy Leader of the Council Daniel Thomas
https://twitter.com/TrueBlueBarnet
No tweets for Mike Freer or Matthew Offord this month
Senior Councillor David Longstaffe
2 retweets this month mentioning Mike Freer
https://twitter.com/David_Longstaff
New Hampstead Garden Suburb Councillor Gabriel Rozenberg
One retweet of a Boris video supporting Matthew Offord and one tweet promoting Andrew Dismore?? as best as I can tell
https://twitter.com/rozgab
Mayor of Barnet Hugh Rayner
No tweets on election. May be due to ceremonial role of Mayor?
https://twitter.com/50MayorofBarnet/with_replies
It seems that the Barnet Tories have no interest at all in social media. Is it because they don't understand it or are just scared to death of saying stupid things? I find it massively disheartening that the local Conservatives are completely shunning the opportunity to engage with the electorate in this manner. If I were running their campaign I'd insist that all councillors had twitter accounts and as a very minimum retweeted key points of interest to their friends and followers.
In my street (Millway, NW7), in the 1970's and 1980's elections we'd see dozens of boards at the top end of the road (where the richer people live) with the "It's Gorst of Course" message on promoting the local, well liked ex MP John Gorst. We'd get knocked up at least 3 or 4 times and there would be a Tory stall every week on Mill Hill Broadway.
What we now see is a largely geriatric party, which has no desire to get out and engage with younger voters or develop new channels to get their message across. The only semi active Tory COuncillor who blogs is Cllr Dan Thomas - http://truebluedanthomas.blogspot.co.uk/ - who hasn't bothered to post a blog since January. Does he feel that the Tory MP's are so toxic that he doesn't want to associate with them.
In the whole of Barnet, the only active Tory blogger is maverick ex Councillor Daniel Hope, who writes the Barnet Bugle blog. Hope fell out with the local party when he was deselected in Brunswick Park in 2006. Given hs history with Freer and Offord it is unsurprising that he is less than enthusiastic about their campaigns. Hope turned up at the FSB business breakfast at Cafe Buzz with his video camera, but no footage of Mike Freer has made it onto his blog. One has to wonder whether this was because he thought it would be unhelpful to Freer to list him talking about cheese liberalisation and that he thought the UK would vote to stay in the EU? Only Dan can tell us and he's keeping his counsel (unusually).
On a more general note, it is interesting to see that the majority of tweets expressing a genuine interest in Freer are from the LBGT community - https://twitter.com/search?f=realtime&q=freer4fgg&src=typd - which Mike has done an excellent job in representing. It is telling that nearly all pictures etc of Freer are shown with the same rather small band of supporters.
Matthew Offords general twitter coverage has been slightly more interesting - https://twitter.com/search?f=realtime&q=offord4hendon&src=typd - with a few decent pictures in pubs pulling pints etc and his dog seems to be a real winner in the engagement stakes.One has to wonder just what is going on at a national level with the Conservative Campaign. This is being overseen by alleged election guru Lynton Crosby. Given that both Hendon and Finchley changed hands at the last election, one would assume that they should be considered marginals. The Conservative party is a well funded organisation and I know that whenever I've run a campaign there are certain basics that you observe. One of these is to ensure that you use whatever tools you have at your disposal. Getting your local councillors (who get a minimum bung of £10K from the taxpayer, purley because they wear your rosette) to support the campaign is surely a complete no brainer.
The fact of the matter is that the Tories should be continually tweeting that they are canvassing in certain roads, getting pictures of smiling members of the public, quotes saying how marvellous they've been, smiling councillors with the MPs etc. Social media is free, so it is exempt from campaign rules. Clever messages can go viral and can reach place in ten minutes that a week of door knocking won't achieve.
If the local Tories wake up in May to an electoral route, they have only themselves to blame. Both Matthew Offord and Mike Freer have been busier blocking people such as me on Twitter than they have in promoting their message. Their stance is idiotic, as probably at least 40% of people who follow my twitter account and blog locally are Conservatives. They often don't agree with what I have to say, but they value the fact that I raise local issues. By refusing to engage with me (and even the Tory leaning Barnet Bugle) they are missing a huge opportunity to get people involved in their campaign.
When I look at the current Conservative election campaign, it reminds me of a conversation I had with an IBM mainframe computer salesman in 1984. He told me that IBM would always be the worlds largest computer company because corporations always consider the FUD factor when buying. I was bemused. "What was FUD?" I asked. He replied "Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt". He explained that in corporate computing anything except IBM was a risk.
What he didn't realise was that the world of computing was evolving. Now when we talk about IT we talk about Google and Microsoft as the big players. IBM still make mainframes for corporations, but the world of IT has long since passed them by and they are bit part niche players. I suspect that with the Tories head in the sand attitude, they will have to evolve or face the same fate.
Sunday, 19 April 2015
Hendon Tory Candidate Offord claims he can represent "Humans in Hendon better because he isn't one!"
The Barnet Eye has learned from usually reliable sources (down at the Bridge Pub in Mill Hill) that as part of his campiagn to secure human rights for dogs, Former Hendon Conservative MP Matthew Offord has got his Jack Russell terrier Max to take his place as Conservative Candidate for Hendon. It appears that Boris Johnson (Pictured with Max) was so impressed with Max's ability to woo the crowds that he has persuaded Matthew to step aside and let Max run as candidate.
Usually reliable sources have informed the Barnet Eye that Max was unsure at first, until he heard Mike Freer's explanation of how Non Jews can represent Jews in Parliament far better than Jewish people. After a long chat with Boris, Mike and Matthew, Max was won over.
His spokesperson said "After listening to Mike Freer's impeccable logic, Max realised that it was best for the people of Hendon if they were represented by a non human. As everyone knows, people trust dogs far more than politicians and they are recognised for the qualities of loyalty, faithfulness and doggedness". Max was also able to explain that he has massively improved Matthew's fitness, ensuring that rather than sit around drinking and eating cakes, he gets Matthew off his ever growing posterior and out for some walkies.
Max also explained that dogs exemplify "true Tory values". Unlike Socialists who are driven by the rather bizarre concept of "communal good", dogs will do anything for a nice treat. Max is on the liberal wing of the Conservative party, believing that if he wants to lick his testicles in public, why should anyone have the right to stop him.
Max explained that wheras Socialists believe in equality and fairness, dogs follow the Conservative mantra of following the pack leader and the biggest doggie gets the biggest dinner! Like his owner Matthew, Max is not a supporter of Same Sex Marriage, explaining "why should I want to get married when there are so many nice chair legs out there?"
The Barnet Eye approached Mike Freer for a quote about whether his logic applied to dogs representing humans in Parliament, but he seemed a tad unwilling to respond. A spokesperson who may be close to Mike replied "whilst at first Mike was sceptical about Max's abilities to represent the people of Hendon, on balance he felt that he'd be a more sensible candidate than Matthew".
The Barnet Eye was able to speak to Max in Mill Hill Broadway today and asked how the campaign has been going. Max replied "Rough".
The Barnet Eye has spoken to contacts within the Labour Campaign about the sudden change of Tory Candidate. An unofficial spokesperson for Andrew Dismore stated that it was worrying because unlike his owner, Max had charm and charisma and people like dogs.
UKIP were unable to confirm whether their latest candidate in Hendon has been replaced by this rather nice moggie, pictured with the UKIP national director of operations (left).
His spokesperson said "After listening to Mike Freer's impeccable logic, Max realised that it was best for the people of Hendon if they were represented by a non human. As everyone knows, people trust dogs far more than politicians and they are recognised for the qualities of loyalty, faithfulness and doggedness". Max was also able to explain that he has massively improved Matthew's fitness, ensuring that rather than sit around drinking and eating cakes, he gets Matthew off his ever growing posterior and out for some walkies.
Max also explained that dogs exemplify "true Tory values". Unlike Socialists who are driven by the rather bizarre concept of "communal good", dogs will do anything for a nice treat. Max is on the liberal wing of the Conservative party, believing that if he wants to lick his testicles in public, why should anyone have the right to stop him.
Max explained that wheras Socialists believe in equality and fairness, dogs follow the Conservative mantra of following the pack leader and the biggest doggie gets the biggest dinner! Like his owner Matthew, Max is not a supporter of Same Sex Marriage, explaining "why should I want to get married when there are so many nice chair legs out there?"
The Barnet Eye approached Mike Freer for a quote about whether his logic applied to dogs representing humans in Parliament, but he seemed a tad unwilling to respond. A spokesperson who may be close to Mike replied "whilst at first Mike was sceptical about Max's abilities to represent the people of Hendon, on balance he felt that he'd be a more sensible candidate than Matthew".
The Barnet Eye was able to speak to Max in Mill Hill Broadway today and asked how the campaign has been going. Max replied "Rough".
The Barnet Eye has spoken to contacts within the Labour Campaign about the sudden change of Tory Candidate. An unofficial spokesperson for Andrew Dismore stated that it was worrying because unlike his owner, Max had charm and charisma and people like dogs.
UKIP were unable to confirm whether their latest candidate in Hendon has been replaced by this rather nice moggie, pictured with the UKIP national director of operations (left).Tuesday, 14 April 2015
Matthew Offord Vs Mike Freer - The split at the heart of the local Tories
We have a rather odd situation in Barnet. Back in 2009 Mike Freer Mp was the leader of the Council and Matthew Offord was his deputy. I hadn't realised it at the time, but the two were "The Odd couple" of Barnet politics. I sort of assumed they were joined at the hip, how wrong could I have been.
A tweet yesterday reminded me of this. Kelly Wilson tweeted a message posted by the "coalition for marriage".
No show at Hustings & now automatic support to @Andrew_Dismore and @alasdairghill. What planet is @Offord4Hendon on?
Now I hadn't really heard of the coalition for marriage and when I saw the tweet, I assumed that they were disgusted at Offords stance against Same Sex Marriage. However it turns out that the Coalition for Marriage are not a Coalition for Marriage. They are actually a coalition against marriage, where people are of the same sex. They do not like it when two people of the same sex decide to tie the knot. Now I am married to someone who is not the same sex as me. That was my choice, which I was completely free to make. We didn't seek anyone elses approval and what we do in private is our business. Whether we go to our bedroom and play tiddly winks, watch football on the telly or other things which are none of your business, well that is our business. We've had our moments, but I think for both of us marriage has been good. We've supported each other when our parents died, in illness and through other disappointments. I can't, in all honesty see what right I've got to deny another human being the right to do the same. Of course there are biblical objections to same sex relationships. There are also biblical objections to eating shellfish, on pain of death. We've moved on. Right wing Christian organisations are militantly against same sex marriage, but Jesus said "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone" on matters of morality. So I keep all my stones in my pocket when I see someone who makes different choices to me.
As for Mike Freer, another tweet shows he takes a completely different stand on the subject to his former deputy.
Congrats! Tory MP @mikefreermp and partner Angelo convert their civil partnership to marriage http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2015/01/22/congratulations-tory-mp-mike-freer-and-partner-angelo-convert-their-civil-partnership-to-marriage/ …
Apparently Offords stance has caused major tensions in their relationship and the two campaigns have virtually no cooperation at all in local matters. Word reaches the Barnet Eye that privately Freer thinks Offord is a complete idiot and has little to do with him, although publicly hios view is that Offord is entitled to his opinion. Either way "The Odd Couple" have not had an amicable parting of the ways.
I must confess I feel a little bit of sympathy for Freer in this matter. He was supportive of Offord, who was not a spectacularly successful deputy and he feels that Offord has not exactly repaid this in the nicest way. We assume that when Offord was working with Freer and Freer was his boss, he kept his views rather quiet on the matter.
The Conservative Party is a broad church and clearly it does accomodate people with all manner of views. I would rather hope that whatever happens with Mike Freer, no one uses his private life as a reason not to vote for him. I do however take a slightly different view with Matthew Offord. A man who clearly keeps his mouth shut when it's convenient and is keen to discriminate against a sizeable portion of the electorate and even his colleagues and friends, in my mind is a man who really doesn't deserve to be sent back to Westminster.
A tweet yesterday reminded me of this. Kelly Wilson tweeted a message posted by the "coalition for marriage".
Kelly Wilson
Now I hadn't really heard of the coalition for marriage and when I saw the tweet, I assumed that they were disgusted at Offords stance against Same Sex Marriage. However it turns out that the Coalition for Marriage are not a Coalition for Marriage. They are actually a coalition against marriage, where people are of the same sex. They do not like it when two people of the same sex decide to tie the knot. Now I am married to someone who is not the same sex as me. That was my choice, which I was completely free to make. We didn't seek anyone elses approval and what we do in private is our business. Whether we go to our bedroom and play tiddly winks, watch football on the telly or other things which are none of your business, well that is our business. We've had our moments, but I think for both of us marriage has been good. We've supported each other when our parents died, in illness and through other disappointments. I can't, in all honesty see what right I've got to deny another human being the right to do the same. Of course there are biblical objections to same sex relationships. There are also biblical objections to eating shellfish, on pain of death. We've moved on. Right wing Christian organisations are militantly against same sex marriage, but Jesus said "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone" on matters of morality. So I keep all my stones in my pocket when I see someone who makes different choices to me.
As for Mike Freer, another tweet shows he takes a completely different stand on the subject to his former deputy.
Congrats! Tory MP @mikefreermp and partner Angelo convert their civil partnership to marriage http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2015/01/22/congratulations-tory-mp-mike-freer-and-partner-angelo-convert-their-civil-partnership-to-marriage/ …
PinkNews
Apparently Offords stance has caused major tensions in their relationship and the two campaigns have virtually no cooperation at all in local matters. Word reaches the Barnet Eye that privately Freer thinks Offord is a complete idiot and has little to do with him, although publicly hios view is that Offord is entitled to his opinion. Either way "The Odd Couple" have not had an amicable parting of the ways.
I must confess I feel a little bit of sympathy for Freer in this matter. He was supportive of Offord, who was not a spectacularly successful deputy and he feels that Offord has not exactly repaid this in the nicest way. We assume that when Offord was working with Freer and Freer was his boss, he kept his views rather quiet on the matter.
The Conservative Party is a broad church and clearly it does accomodate people with all manner of views. I would rather hope that whatever happens with Mike Freer, no one uses his private life as a reason not to vote for him. I do however take a slightly different view with Matthew Offord. A man who clearly keeps his mouth shut when it's convenient and is keen to discriminate against a sizeable portion of the electorate and even his colleagues and friends, in my mind is a man who really doesn't deserve to be sent back to Westminster.
Saturday, 4 April 2015
Hendon Conservatives Campaign Launch Special
Yes, election fever has hit the Bunns Lane office of local Tory MP Matthew Offord. Since his election in 2010, Matthew has lead a whole string of exciting campaigns including
* Human rights for dogs
* Opposition to same sex marriage
* Bought fish and Chips in 2013
Sadly for Mill Hill Residents, he hasn't delivered on his promise of a cheese shop for Mill Hill. Unlike many MP's Mr Offord does not however believe charity begins at home, or at least thats what his homeless brother has to say. Mr Offord has raised his profile in the party since he first became an MP (Daviod Cameron famously mistook him for the soup waiter).
Anyway, if you want to keep up with Matthew's exciting and action packed agenda, we urge you to follow him on Facebook.
It is full of exciting info and video clips like this one of
Had a cracking morning in Hendon to mark the launch of the Conservative campaign in London along with local candidate...
Posted by Boris Johnson on Wednesday, 1 April 2015
Wednesday, 5 September 2012
Where is the cheese shop promised by Matthew Offord
Perhaps the oddest moment I had canvassing in the 2010 election, was when I was standing in Mill Hill Broadway, handing out leaflets, when a little old lady strutted up to me and told me that the Tory candidate, Matthew Offord had promised her that if he won, a cheese shop would open in Mill Hill.
Two years on, those of us who are partial to a little bit of Fromage are still wondering when Matthew Offords cheese shop will open. Unlike many people, I would actually forgive many of Offords sins if he actually kept this promise. Small independent cheese sellers are signs of a healthy high street. What was the latest shop to open in Mill Hill Broadway? Another nail salon.
Offord stated that the Tories would "make Mill Hill a vibrant town centre, the sort of place someone would want to open a cheese shop". I was reminded of this tonight as I saw the lady in question in Marks and Spencers. Rather oddly she met at the cheese counter. She asked "What has happened to Offord, no one has seen him for months". I had to reply "don't know, he's keeping a low profile". She said "He never opened that cheese shop did he?". Sadly I had to agree.
I checked Matthews website to see what he's been up to. You will be pleased to know that on our behalf, he's had a holiday in Sri Lanka - http://www.matthewofford.co.uk/newsshow.aspx?id=4&ref=184 - I wonder if he managed to open a cheese shop in Columbo?
There is plenty of other news as to what Matthew has been up to here - http://www.matthewofford.co.uk/news.aspx?id=4 - Sadly little of his activities seems to have anything to do with the people who voted for him.
Two years on, those of us who are partial to a little bit of Fromage are still wondering when Matthew Offords cheese shop will open. Unlike many people, I would actually forgive many of Offords sins if he actually kept this promise. Small independent cheese sellers are signs of a healthy high street. What was the latest shop to open in Mill Hill Broadway? Another nail salon.
Offord stated that the Tories would "make Mill Hill a vibrant town centre, the sort of place someone would want to open a cheese shop". I was reminded of this tonight as I saw the lady in question in Marks and Spencers. Rather oddly she met at the cheese counter. She asked "What has happened to Offord, no one has seen him for months". I had to reply "don't know, he's keeping a low profile". She said "He never opened that cheese shop did he?". Sadly I had to agree.
I checked Matthews website to see what he's been up to. You will be pleased to know that on our behalf, he's had a holiday in Sri Lanka - http://www.matthewofford.co.uk/newsshow.aspx?id=4&ref=184 - I wonder if he managed to open a cheese shop in Columbo?
There is plenty of other news as to what Matthew has been up to here - http://www.matthewofford.co.uk/news.aspx?id=4 - Sadly little of his activities seems to have anything to do with the people who voted for him.
Wednesday, 25 July 2012
Is Hendon MP Matthew Offord considering joining the Labour Party?
A rather interesting tweet from Hendon Conservative MP Matthew Offord
HendonMP: Great night at Keith Vaz's party in Soho. Good speech from Blair and Livingstone said how disappointed he was with the GLA result in Barnet
I hadn't realised what a fan of Ken Livingstone and Tony Blair Matthew was. One can only wonder if matthew doesn't do irony. I am sure Ken Livingstone is absolutely gutted that Brian Coleman lost his seat. At least he seems to have got through the night without thumping anyone. Maybe he feels more comfortable in the company of Labour members?
HendonMP: Great night at Keith Vaz's party in Soho. Good speech from Blair and Livingstone said how disappointed he was with the GLA result in Barnet
I hadn't realised what a fan of Ken Livingstone and Tony Blair Matthew was. One can only wonder if matthew doesn't do irony. I am sure Ken Livingstone is absolutely gutted that Brian Coleman lost his seat. At least he seems to have got through the night without thumping anyone. Maybe he feels more comfortable in the company of Labour members?
Thursday, 29 April 2010
Nick Clegg spotted in Mill Hill and the dangers of canvassing
You hear all sorts of views, all sorts of opinions and all sorts of comments. Sometimes you may have talked to someone and thought you've made a great impression and only find out later that you got the complete wrong end of the stick. Let me give you an example of one such event in Mill Hill.
One Lady who I spoke to yesterday told me she was highly impressed with the local Lib Dem campaign in Mill Hill. I was rather pleased having worked hard on it for the last six months. Then she delivered the knockout blow. "I was so impressed with you getting Nick Clegg down to the Mill Hill Broadway on Saturday". I was rather puzzled. "Nick Clegg in the Broadway?". She replied "Yes you know, when you had your stall. He was walking up and down handing out spoof Conservative leaflets".
Suddenly the truth dawned. She'd met Matthew Offord, the local Conservative candidate for Parliament, who had also been doing the rounds. Now I had a dilemma. What should I say. She carried on "I told him he did very well in the debate and he said thank you very much". I realised Matthew must have thought she was talking about the candidates debate at the local Shul. I thought I'd try and break the news gently "Do you know who the local Conservative candidate is?" I asked. "Oh yes, he knocked on my door. He's that chap who looks like Jimmy Edwards. I wouldn't give him the time of day". I asked her if she'd be voting for us. She replied "yes, I've already posted my vote. I always do".At that I decided that I'd leave it there. I wonder how many other people met Matthew Offord and thought he was Nick Clegg handing out spoof Conservative leaflets? I suppose that given his enormous popularity, if I was Matthew I would take it as a compliment.
Mill Hill Lib Dem helps Tory Election Campaign
I have a confession to make. I've helped our local Conservative candidate, Matthew Offord with his campaign to be an MP. Now I didn't know I was helping him, but had I known, I would have still helped him. Does this shock you, knowing my views on Matthew?
Let me explain. I just got a Matthew Offord leaflet through the door. It is a two page newspaper style leaflet. On the back is a picture of a group of pensioners under the title "Labour cuts freedom pass". If you look carefully at the picture, there is a Lady at the back of a certain age, holding up her pass. She is a neighbour of mine. She lives on her own and I've known her for years. On many occasions we've helped her out in small ways. I don't mind, it's what a community does for each other.
About six weeks ago, she came down to see me. She was having trouble filling in her application for her freedom pass. I duly helped her complete the form and then walked around to the post office and posted the envelope. That was the end of the matter I thought. The next time I saw this pass was this morning on the Matthew Offord magazine. Had I known what she'd do, would I have given her the bird and told her to go away? No of course I wouldn't. So what if it helps Matthew Offord with his campaign. We are all entitled to our views.
We are a tolerant society and I celebrate the fact that I get on with all sorts of people with all sorts of political views. It is sad that some politicians live in such an insular bubble that they can't see beyond their own narrow interests
Let me explain. I just got a Matthew Offord leaflet through the door. It is a two page newspaper style leaflet. On the back is a picture of a group of pensioners under the title "Labour cuts freedom pass". If you look carefully at the picture, there is a Lady at the back of a certain age, holding up her pass. She is a neighbour of mine. She lives on her own and I've known her for years. On many occasions we've helped her out in small ways. I don't mind, it's what a community does for each other.
About six weeks ago, she came down to see me. She was having trouble filling in her application for her freedom pass. I duly helped her complete the form and then walked around to the post office and posted the envelope. That was the end of the matter I thought. The next time I saw this pass was this morning on the Matthew Offord magazine. Had I known what she'd do, would I have given her the bird and told her to go away? No of course I wouldn't. So what if it helps Matthew Offord with his campaign. We are all entitled to our views.
We are a tolerant society and I celebrate the fact that I get on with all sorts of people with all sorts of political views. It is sad that some politicians live in such an insular bubble that they can't see beyond their own narrow interests
Tuesday, 2 December 2008
Barnet Council Future Shape - A conflict of interest?
BT invited Barnet Council Leader Mike Freer and CEO Leo Boland to participate in the Vital Vision program. This program involves seminars and conferences to "nurture" interest in concepts such as outsourcing within the public sector. Participants are invited to conferences in places such as Boston and attend swanky restaurants such as Lucca restaurant in Boston (click HERE for a preview). I've detailed the full program elsewhere on the blog, but on the eve of the Future Shape discussion, I feel obliged to ask a few questions regarding the proposal and the way the report has been put together.
I am directing these questions primarily at the Cabinet of Barnet Council and am asking them to give these points due consideration in advance of the debate tomorrow (3rd December).
1. Do you think that Council Leader Mike Freer's enrollment in the BT Vital Vision program may be interpreted as a conflict of interest given that BT are a primary supplier of Outsourcing services. Could this be construed as giving BT unfair access to a senior decision maker within Barnet Council?
2. Do you think that the inclusion of Max Wide, BT Director, Strategic Development Local Government, as a contributor to the future shape report, may be construed as giving an unfair advantage to BT in the procurement process?
3. Do you think that restricting access in the process of framing the report to an elite circle, including a supplier standing to make a lot of money from the recommendations, whilst excluding established stakeholders, is likely to be seen as an open and honest way of conducting business?
4. Do you think that suppliers of particular products are more or less likely to recommend solutions provided by their employers than those of rival organisations?
5. If you were seeking advice pertaining to your own personal financial situation, would you use an independent adviser or an adviser working for a company supplying the products you wanted to buy.
Whilst only participants of the vital vision scheme will actually know the detail of the subject matter covered and whilst it is made quite clear that the scheme is not a sales related scheme, the Council has to be seen to be open and honest in its procurement policies. Whilst it is quite clear that BT do not pay travel and subsistance for participants, being a public body, the Council must be seen to be completely honest and impartial in all its dealings. The participation of Mike Freer in BT Vital Vision and the role of Max Wide in the framing of the Future Shape report raises many questions regarding the way the scheme is being implemented.
I strongly urge all Barnet Council Cabinet members to consider these points and ensure that all decisions taken with reference to "Future Shape" are done in such a manner that it is 100% clear that there is no conflict of interest in the process.
I am directing these questions primarily at the Cabinet of Barnet Council and am asking them to give these points due consideration in advance of the debate tomorrow (3rd December).
1. Do you think that Council Leader Mike Freer's enrollment in the BT Vital Vision program may be interpreted as a conflict of interest given that BT are a primary supplier of Outsourcing services. Could this be construed as giving BT unfair access to a senior decision maker within Barnet Council?
2. Do you think that the inclusion of Max Wide, BT Director, Strategic Development Local Government, as a contributor to the future shape report, may be construed as giving an unfair advantage to BT in the procurement process?
3. Do you think that restricting access in the process of framing the report to an elite circle, including a supplier standing to make a lot of money from the recommendations, whilst excluding established stakeholders, is likely to be seen as an open and honest way of conducting business?
4. Do you think that suppliers of particular products are more or less likely to recommend solutions provided by their employers than those of rival organisations?
5. If you were seeking advice pertaining to your own personal financial situation, would you use an independent adviser or an adviser working for a company supplying the products you wanted to buy.
Whilst only participants of the vital vision scheme will actually know the detail of the subject matter covered and whilst it is made quite clear that the scheme is not a sales related scheme, the Council has to be seen to be open and honest in its procurement policies. Whilst it is quite clear that BT do not pay travel and subsistance for participants, being a public body, the Council must be seen to be completely honest and impartial in all its dealings. The participation of Mike Freer in BT Vital Vision and the role of Max Wide in the framing of the Future Shape report raises many questions regarding the way the scheme is being implemented.
I strongly urge all Barnet Council Cabinet members to consider these points and ensure that all decisions taken with reference to "Future Shape" are done in such a manner that it is 100% clear that there is no conflict of interest in the process.
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