Community hub
Recent from talks
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Mike Freer
Michael Whitney Freer (born 29 May 1960) is a British Conservative Party politician and former banker who served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Courts and Legal Services from September 2022 to July 2024. He was first elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of Finchley and Golders Green at the 2010 general election, and stood down in 2024.
Freer is a former leader of Barnet Council and a former councillor for the St Paul's and Finchley Church End wards.
Michael Whitney Freer was born in Manchester on 29 May 1960. Part of his childhood was spent in a council house, which was then bought by his parents following the Conservative government's Right to Buy policy. He was educated at the Chadderton Grammar School for Boys and subsequently at St Aidan's County High School (now Richard Rose Central Academy) in Carlisle. He read accountancy and business law at the University of Stirling but did not graduate with a degree.
Freer worked for a number of fast-food chains, including Pizzaland, Pizza Hut and KFC, prior to a management career in the financial sector. Freer worked for Barclays Bank as an "Area Performance Manager".
Freer was first elected to Barnet Council in 1990 as a Conservative for the St Paul's ward, winning the seat from Labour. However, he lost the seat back to Labour in 1994 and went on to lose in the East Finchley ward in 1998. He was re-elected to the council, for the Finchley Church End ward, in 2002. He was unanimously elected leader of the council by his party on 11 May 2006, replacing Brian Salinger as Conservative group leader, having previously been Salinger's deputy.
Following the collapse of Icelandic banks Glitnir and Landsbanki in October 2008 in which Barnet Council had invested £27.4m of council taxpayers' money, Freer was named Private Eye's "Banker of the Year" in its Rotten Borough Awards of 2008. The money was subsequently recovered.
In 2009, Freer announced a new model of local government delivery for the London Borough of Barnet, called "Future Shape" which he stated could save Barnet Council £24 million a year. The scheme has been dubbed easyCouncil because of its similarity to easyJet's business model.
In the 2005 general election, Freer contested Harrow West, coming second with 38.3% of the vote behind the incumbent Labour MP Gareth Thomas.
Hub AI
Mike Freer AI simulator
(@Mike Freer_simulator)
Mike Freer
Michael Whitney Freer (born 29 May 1960) is a British Conservative Party politician and former banker who served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Courts and Legal Services from September 2022 to July 2024. He was first elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of Finchley and Golders Green at the 2010 general election, and stood down in 2024.
Freer is a former leader of Barnet Council and a former councillor for the St Paul's and Finchley Church End wards.
Michael Whitney Freer was born in Manchester on 29 May 1960. Part of his childhood was spent in a council house, which was then bought by his parents following the Conservative government's Right to Buy policy. He was educated at the Chadderton Grammar School for Boys and subsequently at St Aidan's County High School (now Richard Rose Central Academy) in Carlisle. He read accountancy and business law at the University of Stirling but did not graduate with a degree.
Freer worked for a number of fast-food chains, including Pizzaland, Pizza Hut and KFC, prior to a management career in the financial sector. Freer worked for Barclays Bank as an "Area Performance Manager".
Freer was first elected to Barnet Council in 1990 as a Conservative for the St Paul's ward, winning the seat from Labour. However, he lost the seat back to Labour in 1994 and went on to lose in the East Finchley ward in 1998. He was re-elected to the council, for the Finchley Church End ward, in 2002. He was unanimously elected leader of the council by his party on 11 May 2006, replacing Brian Salinger as Conservative group leader, having previously been Salinger's deputy.
Following the collapse of Icelandic banks Glitnir and Landsbanki in October 2008 in which Barnet Council had invested £27.4m of council taxpayers' money, Freer was named Private Eye's "Banker of the Year" in its Rotten Borough Awards of 2008. The money was subsequently recovered.
In 2009, Freer announced a new model of local government delivery for the London Borough of Barnet, called "Future Shape" which he stated could save Barnet Council £24 million a year. The scheme has been dubbed easyCouncil because of its similarity to easyJet's business model.
In the 2005 general election, Freer contested Harrow West, coming second with 38.3% of the vote behind the incumbent Labour MP Gareth Thomas.