From temporary accommodation to parliament

In the first of his new regular monthly columns for Barnet Post, Dan Tomlinson MP writes about how he first discovered the impact that MPs can make

Dan Tomlinson MP opening the free breakfast club at Ashmole Primary School – (Credit – Ashmole Primary School)

Growing up, I thought that all Members of Parliament did was deliver painfully long (and boring) speeches in the House of Commons. If you’d asked young me if I thought MPs cared about families like the one I grew up in, I would probably have laughed at you.

When I was a child, my family and I lived in temporary accommodation for a time. A friend of my mum’s suggested we write to our MP. And there my mind was changed. After getting in touch with my MP, we went from being a family without a proper home to a family with a permanent one.

That home gave my family stability. Something which I endeavour to bring to anyone with who calls my office, emails in, or shares a problem with me on the doorstep.

It changed my understanding of what an MP could be. Rather than aloof and distant, I saw them as helpful and reliable. From then on, I saw just how much of an impact MPs could make.

In my career before parliament, I worked as an economist, and saw that politicians can make a difference on the national stage, and when the opportunity arose to run in the constituency I live in, I gave it a chance and here I am.

An MP’s effectiveness, though, rests on something else fundamental, too: a genuine love and commitment to the place you’re elected to serve.

I love Barnet. I love seeing London skylines on a clear day from the top of the hill; chatting to local business owners such as the Bone family on the market stall; seeing empty shops reopen on our high streets; a walk in Oak Hill Park.

The list goes on. I want everyone here, and across this great country, to feel that same admiration and pride in the place we all call home.

It means everything to me to be able to serve this place and its people. So, whether you voted for me or not, I am here to help you.

If you have a problem, or simply want to get in touch, you can email me on [email protected] or visit my website dantomlinson.org.uk, which has information on how to raise an issue with me, request a meeting, and my priorities for Chipping Barnet.

I’m looking forward to sharing updates once a month in the Barnet Post. It’s so important that you know what I’m doing for you to make all of our lives better.

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