|
The Chipping Barnet Constituency is one of three Constituencies within the pleasant outer London Borough of Barnet. Within the Constituency lie the wards of Brunswick Park, Coppetts (small part), East Barnet, High Barnet, Oakleigh, Totteridge, Woodhouse (small part) and Underhill Ward (major part).
Boundary changes, which will not take effect until the next General Election will add the whole of Coppetts and Underhill to the Constituency and lose the part which is in Woodhouse Ward.
Barnet is probably best known for "the Battle of Barnet" - fought during the Wars of the Roses and Barnet Fair, from which we get the cockney rhyming slang for Hair - Barnet.
The "Chipping Barnet" constituency is the north-eastern third of Barnet bounded by the county of Hertfordshire to the north. The main shopping areas of the constituency are the market town of Barnet to the north, Whetstone and North Finchley to the south and New Barnet and East Barnet Village to the east.
The original 'Barnet' Constituency was carved out of the south eastern half of the then St Albans Division of Hertfordshire in 1945. In those days the Constituency included Hatfield, Shenley, Cuffley, Elstree, Borehamwood and surrounding villages. The first Member of Parliament was Dr S Taylor (Socialist), elected in the landslide post- war victory for the Labour Party.
In 1950, the seat was won by Reginald Maudling (Conservative) with a majority of over 10,000. Reggie, as he was known, retained the seat until his death in 1979. During his 29 years in Parliament, Reggie held the offices of Deputy Leader of the Conservative Party, Chancellor of the Exchequer (1962-4) and Home Secretary (1970-2).
Following boundary changes in 1955, the constituency lost Hatfield and its villages, but retained Elstree and the expanding town of Borehamwood, which was being developed by the former London County Council as an overspill housing town. Elstree and Borehamwood can be seen in a number of English Films made at Elstree Studios - including some of the early "Carry On" films. Today Barnet is occasionally used to film some outside shots for the BBC's Eastenders which is based at Elstree Studios.
Following the re-organisation of London Local Government in 1964, the Urban Districts of Barnet and East Barnet were amalgamated with Finchley Borough, Friern Barnet Urban and Hendon Borough Councils to form the London Borough of Barnet. Elstree and Borehamwood remained in Elstree Rural District Council within the County of Hertfordshire
Upon further boundary changes in 1974, the constituency lost Elstree and Borehamwood to the new Hertsmere Division of Hertfordshire, leaving just 5 Barnet Council wards to make the new Constituency known as Chipping Barnet. Reggie Maulding was selected as the Conservative candidate for the new smaller Chipping Barnet constituency and won the two elections in 1974.
After Reggie's death in February 1979, the Association selected Sir Sydney Chapman MP to fight the By-election. However, in the meantime, the Labour Government suffered a vote of no confidence and a General Election was called. Sir Sydney retained the seat for 6 elections, retiring in 2005. During his time as our local MP, he spent a period Vice Chancellor of the Queen’s Household.
Since 1964, the Conservatives had enjoyed control of Barnet Council, with double figure majorities. In 1994, Labour gained a number of wards including three seats in East Barnet for the first time. Although the Conservatives were still the largest party in the council chamber, Labour formed a “working partnership” with the Lib Dems to control the council for the next 8 years.
In 1997, due to migration from London, the Borough of Barnet had to lose one Constituency. Chipping Barnet gained Friern Barnet Ward from the former Finchley Constituency.
Sir Sydney once again retained the seat for the Conservatives at the 1997 election. The result was a knife-edge majority of 1,035 with a swing of 14.1% to Labour.
North London was the epicentre of the huge national swing from the Conservatives to Labour. Sir Sydney’s popularity among his constituents was certainly a major factor in the Conservatives not only retaining the seat while all around fell, but was the lowest swing against the Conservatives in North London.
At the 2002 elections for Barnet Council, the Conservatives regained control of the Council having lost to a Labour/Liberal coalition 8 years earlier. All five of the additional seats were gained in the Chipping Barnet Constituency.
In his farewell speech, the former Labour Leader of the Council told the newly elected councillors that his party had changed the face of Barnet forever. No longer was it that quaint leafy suburb.
Certainly during their reign, the ward boundaries were changed in Labour’s favour and it did not go unnoticed that 78% of the social housing built in the Chipping Barnet constituency has been built in one ward – Brunswick Park. At the 1998 Borough elections, Labour won a seat in Brunswick Park for the first time.
At the 2006 election, we made further progress, winning two seats in Coppetts Ward, which straddles both the Chipping Barnet and Finchley constituencies.
Since 2000, we have fought elections for the Greater London Assembly and the Mayor of London. At the first election, Cllr brian Coleman won the Barnet and Camden division with a slender majority of 551. In 2004, he increased his majority to over 11,000.
Theresa Villiers was selected as the Conservative Prospective Parliamentary Candidate in May 2003 at a meeting attended by over 200 members of the Association.
After months of campaigning, she went onto fight the 2005 General Election and was returned with a majority of 5960 - almost double Sir Sydney’s 2001 majority.
Chipping Barnet has been a Conservative seat for 57 years and is considered by most political pundits to be a safe Conservative seat.
The old A1 (now A1000) runs vertically through the middle of the constituency. Close to this road one finds some pre-1900 housing, but in the main, the constituency was developed as part of the urban sprawl of London in the 1920's and 1930's. The housing in most of the constituency is highly desirable. In Barnet town centre Victorian three bedroom terraced houses sell for over £400,000, while a country house style house in Totteridge would fetch in excess of £2.5 million.
In the last ten years there have been some political adverse demographical changes to the south of the constituency in North Finchley (Totteridge Ward). Many of the large houses have been converted into flats. Some houses now have multiple occupants (bedsits) or have been demolished to pave the way for one and two bedroom flats. To the south-east, in Brunswick Park Ward, Barnet's former Labour controlled Council built over 200 social housing units.
The Constituency is served by the Underground network with stations at High Barnet, Totteridge & Whetstone, Woodside Park (Northern Line) and Cockfosters (Piccadilly Line). Overground stations are New Barnet and Oakleigh Park, which terminate at Moorgate and Kings Cross.
The main shopping areas in the constituency are Barnet High Street with a small open shopping mall (The Spires), Whetstone and North Finchley. Local shopping can be found at East Barnet Village, Friern Barnet, New Barnet and Hampden Square. There are two "out of town" small retail parks just outside the Constituency.
Top issues in the constituency are crime, the NHS and the Green Belt.
 
| 
