Matthew Offord MP stands down

Matthew Offord MP is standing down as MP for Hendon - You can read his press release BY CLICKING HERE. Matthew was almost an accidental MP. When he was selected, Gordon Brown was PM and was riding high in the polls. He hadn't fallen foul of The Sun and it's chicken, for bottling calling an election following his elevation to replace Tony Blair. Labours Andrew Dismore was the local MP and seen as unassailable by just about everyone locally. Offord was Deputy Leader of Barnet Council and seen by many as a bit of a comedy turn. Everything he turned his hand to ended in disaster, notably the replacement of the rail bridges in Aerodrome Road, which cost nearly double the original £11 million budget. In many ways, these are a good metaphor for Offords career as a politician, starting as a disaster, but by just being there, becoming a part of the local landscape.

Only yesterday I was chatting with a local Labour activist. They were telling me that they thought Hendon was in the bag. I said that I wouldn't be so sure, as the one talent Offord has is to dig up support from the most unlikely of places. The Orthodox Jewish community, Iranian and the Evangelical African community are both big admirers of Matthew, for his steadfast support of their religious practices and sensibilities. When he was first elected in 2010, it was a shock, even though many expected a Tory victory nationally. His winning margin was 103. Local Mill Hill councillor John Hart told me that he took much credit. He'd introduced Matthew to the local Gurka community in Burnt Oak, as well as many of the local businesses and traders. He said that previous Tory contenders had turned their nose up at the less well off areas, but Hart suggested that Offord had garnered 4-500 votes in these communities, which tilted the balance. I have no reason at all to doubt John, who has great political instincts. Offord realised that such communities can lead to a powerful base, one which is almost immune to Labour canvassing. It will be interesting to see if Offords successor takes them as seriously.

Offord has been a firm advocate for many groups that have been pretty much ignored. Whislt these groups are relatively small, they have worked hard in return and helped him build a decdent working majority. Matthew has clearly looked at the way the wind is blowing, seen that he's run out of activists to shore up his core vote and concluded that it's time to go on his own terms. 

So what is his legacy? He claims that his proudest achievement is 'getting step free access for Mill Hill'. Many locals of all political persuasions will be irritated by this. Firstly, after thirteen years, we have no step free access yet. Secondly, there was a group working to get this, which Offord hijacked once it became clear it may be successful. Peope such as Richard Logue, who is a transport planner and George Jones who was the UKIP candidate were key. Sadly, the key factor was when a lady died after falling, which proved the case. I firmly believe that had Offord been on the case from day one, we'd have had step free access long ago and maybe the fall could have been avoided. The major hold up was the engineering challenge of getting a lift to platform one. I have long argued that as an interim, lifts and a bridge should be installed using the already installed step free access to platform four. There is no reason why this couldn't be done. For people dropping off friends and relatives to the station with mobility issues, this would have been ideal. Offords other main achievements? Well his website says

 to have fought successfully for protection for leaseholders affected by the cladding scandal; to have supported Free School status for Etz Chaim, one of the first free schools in the country; to have led the campaign to proscribe Hezbollah, something which was long overdue; to have worked with residents successfully to oppose major planning applications such as that for the Pentavia site and the secondary school proposed for the Broadfields estate.

To me, this is a very short list for thirteen years representing Hendon. Many people affected by the Leaseholder scandal locally will be surprised to learn of Matthew's 'leading role' in this campaign. As to his work opposing developments such as Pentavia, He made a submission and spoke at the council meeting, but I never saw him at any of the meetings we had to co-ordinate opposition. I exchanged dozens of emails with the local Tory councillors, such as Val Duschinsky, putting aside our differences and co-ordination what we were saying to the various planning meetings. Matthew took no part in this. Sure he turned up and made his speech, I'm sure Val advised him, but an MP should have been at the forefront.

Sadly, our local streams and waterways are far more polluted than when Offord took over. Poverty has risen. We didn't have foodbanks when Offord was elected. When Mr Offord was canvassing, he promised a local resident a cheese shop in Mill Hill Broadway. His words were "I want to make Mill Hill Broadway the kind of vibrant high street, where people come and open independent cheese shops and other specialist businesses". Sadly, no cheese shop. We see more empty shops than ever.

Most locals only ever saw Matthew when there was an election looming. I know dozens of people, who contacted him for help to be disappointed. I know that MP's can't fix everyones problems, but Andrew Dismore had a reputation for getting things done. Matthew Offord didn't. Some locals, especially those in the LGBTQ+ community have felt that Matthew actively discriminated against them. He voted against equal marriage, making a rather inflamattory comment about "next thing people will be marrying their dogs". 

I wish Matthew well for his retirement. I have no personal animosity about him. I just wish his retirement had started in 2010. I just hope that whoever replaces him, Tory or Labour (as a Lib Dem I have no skin in the game) works a bit harder, gets properly involved in community leadership and represents everybody in the constituency, not just small groups who are deemed useful during elections.