Police investigate suspected arson attack on Tory MP’s office
Mike Freer's fire-ravaged office
Police are investigating a suspected arson attack at the office of Conservative MP Mike Freer[1].
A fire ripped through the office in Finchley, north London, at about 7pm on Christmas Eve, leaving it a blackened wreck.
Scotland Yard said the blaze started in an adjacent shed but have not yet identified a cause.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said it was too early to say if it was a targeted attack against Mr Freer but they hoped CCTV footage from the surrounding area would allow them to release images of any suspects.
He added: “The cause of the fire is under investigation as it is believed it may have been started deliberately. There have been no arrests.”
The office previously served as former prime minister Margaret Thatcher[2]’s headquarters after her election as an MP for Finchley in 1959.
Mr Freer said that blaze had damaged the rear of the building and described the response from police and the fire brigade, who were “on site in minutes”, as “incredible”.
He added: “The police are still investigating and checking out CCTV footage. Until the suspects are caught we won’t know the motivation. Luckily no one was in the office at the time.”
Richard Holden[3], chairman of the Tory Party, called the incident “utterly appalling”.
He added: “Thank goodness no one was injured and glad I was able to speak to one of the long-standing staff members today.”
Maria Caulfield, Conservative MP for Lewes, posted on X: “Terrible to hear that MP Mike Freer has had his office attacked on Christmas Eve. Thanks to the London Fire Brigade.”
Arjun Mittra, Labour Councillor for East Finchley, added: “Sending solidarity to Mike and the FGG (Finchley and Golders Green) Conservatives. I’m glad that no one was hurt. Any attack on public representatives is unacceptable.”
Tory MP Mike Freer wears stab vest to meet constituents - Elliott Franks
A photograph of the office’s interior shows its interior gutted by fire with walls scorched by the flames.
Mr Freer’s constituency of Finchley and Golders Green[4] is home to a prominent Jewish community with a synagogue situated less than 200 yards away from the office.
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Mr Freer has represented the constituency since 2010 and serves as parliamentary under-secretary of state for courts and legal services.
In April last year, Mr Freer disclosed he had started wearing a stab vest and a panic alarm after the murder of fellow MP Sir David Amess[5] by Ali Harbi Ali, an Isis-inspired terrorist.
Ali had visited Freer’s constituency office where he was spotted peering through a window, and had also done research on the then Tory ministers Michael Gove, Dominic Raab and Ben Wallace and the Labour leader, Keir Starmer.
Mr Freer told jurors during Ali’s trial at the Old Bailey that he had had to cancel most of his usual public engagements and that his husband accompanied him in public for his safety.
He told Ali’s sentencing hearing: “I and my staff now wear stab vests and mobile panic alarms.
“Advice surgeries are an integral part of the system and I don’t want to stop them.
“But since the attack on Sir David Amess, I have had to take sensible precautions to protect my staff and myself.
“Surgeries have been postponed until more robust security is in place.”
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References
- ^ Mike Freer (www.telegraph.co.uk)
- ^ Margaret Thatcher (www.telegraph.co.uk)
- ^ Richard Holden (www.telegraph.co.uk)
- ^ Golders Green (www.telegraph.co.uk)
- ^ Sir David Amess (www.theguardian.com)
- ^ Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month, then enjoy 1 year for just $9 with our US-exclusive offer. (secure.telegraph.co.uk)