Theresa has consistently supported small businesses and retailers, both in campaigning for local projects in high streets around the constituency and supporting legislation in Parliament to benefit small businesses:
- Working with local groups such as the Chipping Barnet Town Team and Love Whetstone to support local high streets;
- Taking action in Parliament to back local businesses, including securing business rate reductions from the Chancellor of the Exchequer;
- Campaigning to keep local post offices;
- Campaigning to save historic Barnet Market, and helping bring the Teenage Market to Barnet;
- Working to conserve and celebrate Barnet’s heritage, including support for the Barnet Medieval Festival;
- Campaigning for action to level the playing field between the big online retailers and local shops by securing a promise from the Government to impose new taxes on the digital multinationals who use aggressive tax avoidance schemes;
- Securing additional funding from the Government and Barnet Council for litter collection; Theresa has also taken part in a number of volunteer litter picks to keep our local town centres clean.
Read more about current and past campaigns below:
Supporting town centres and local businesses
Theresa has worked extensively with the Chipping Barnet Town Team to support Barnet High Street, on issues such as revitalising the Spires shopping centre, opposing higher parking charges imposed by the owners of the shopping centre’s car park, and campaigning to save Barnet Market. For many years she has been attending the East Barnet festival and has warmly welcomed the creation of a Christmas Fair for East Barnet Village. She has also been backing the team at Love Whetstone in their successful effort to create the Whetstone festival. Theresa continues to help a range of individual businesses, events and local charities right across the Chipping Barnet constituency.
October 2021: Budget help for high street businesses welcomed
August 2021: MP helps celebrate 25 years of curry success for Taste of Nawab
March 2019: Barnet submits bid to Future High Streets Fund
December 2018: Villiers supports Small Business Saturday in Barnet
April 2018: Boost for Barnet High Street with launch of Teenage Market
December 2017: MP supports local businesses on Small Business Saturday
December 2017: Villiers kicks of Christmas with festive fair in Barnet High Street
November 2017: Villiers hits out at Mayor's decision to close Barnet Police Station
September 2017: Campaign to save Barnet Police Station: update
September 2017: Barnet MP backs North London Aquatics funding bid for new diving pool
August 2017: MP backs Teenage Market for Barnet
July 2017: Local MP meets teenage graduates of National Citizenship Service
July 2017: Save Barnet Police Station!
July 2017: Villiers celebrates East Barnet festival in the sunshine
May 2017: Villiers welcomes return of left turn in Barnet High Street
May 2017: Red faces for Foxtons as estate agent faces prosecution for dilapidated property
May 2017: Helping small businesses and high streets with a fairer tax system
August 2016: Success for high street: new H&M to open
May 2016: Villiers welcomes new family homes for Whetstone
April 2016: New Environment Centre for Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice
February 2016: Hope for new business in Tudor Park: Villiers asks Barnet Council to think again
December 2015: Support for small business in Barnet
November 2015: Theresa Villiers welcomes new business to Friern Barnet Road
October 2015: Villiers backs small business in fight to save Brake Shear House
September 2015: Whetstone restaurant in House of Commons curry contest
July 2015: Another successful year for the East Barnet festival
February 2015: Villiers welcomes final victory in battle against a superstore in New Barnet
September 2014: Villiers welcomes good news on two campaigns for Barnet High Street
June 2014: Villiers turns out to support classic car show at Barnet Market
May 2014: Villiers backs new pop-up shop to be opened by ‘Love Barnet’
March 2014: Spires saved: Villiers welcomes decision to keep local landmark
December 2013: Villiers backs Small Business Saturday in Barnet
November 2011: Villiers launches Domino Challenge as part of action to boost Chipping Barnet High Street
In Parliament
In the two most recent budgets, Theresa asked for help for local town centres and the Chancellor responded with substantial packages to reduce business rates.
Theresa also welcomed the reduction in Employer National Insurance contributions introduced by the Chancellor to help small businesses, as well as the business rate relief taking effect from 2017.
In December 2016, Theresa used a debate in Parliament to protest about the introduction of compulsory quarterly tax reporting for small businesses through HMRC’s ‘Making Tax Digital’ programme.
October 2018: Villiers welcomes help for local high streets
October 2018: Help our high streets by making digital big business pay their fair share of tax
March 2017: Help for High Streets: Theresa gets key safeguards into Budget
December 2016: Making Tax Digital
April 2016: Boost for low paid workers in Barnet: Villiers welcomes National Living Wage
March 2016: Standing up for the high street: Villiers welcomes business rate help
October 2015: Villiers backs small business in fight to save Brake Shear House
Local post offices
For many years, Theresa has been a strong supporter of local post offices. She successfully campaigned against plans by the previous Labour Government to close East Barnet post office. Thanks to investment in the post office network by the Conservative Government, East Barnet, Bells Hill, Whetstone, and High Barnet post offices all have refurbished facilities and longer opening hours.
December 2018: MP Christmas visit to Royal Mail sorting office
July 2014: Villiers officially opens modernised Wellhouse Lane post office
April 2013: Villiers welcomes upgrade for Alexandra Parade post office
January 2013: Villiers welcomes relocation and revival of East Barnet post office
Barnet Market
Alongside residents' group, Friends of Barnet Market (FoBM), Theresa Villiers fought a long campaign to save our historic market in High Barnet. The market suffered under the previous owners, spending months in a temporary site in the Stapylton Road car park. When it finally returned to its St Albans Road home, it faced very poor conditions for traders and customers, including a terrible uneven surface and tatty hoardings. After the market's home site was bought by the William Pears Group, Theresa pressed them to deliver the improvements to the market which had long been promised. The market re-opened in St Albans Road 23 November 2013 with a new even surface and much improved facilities for market traders. It has recently moved the bandstand area at the back of the Spires.
Theresa helped bring the Teenage Market to Barnet to help boost our town centre and provide new support for Barnet Market.
She is urging her constituents to shop at Barnet Market which is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays between 7am and 3pm.
June 2014: Villiers turns out to support classic car show at Barnet Market
November 2013: Villiers and FoBM gather at Barnet Market to welcome stallholders back
November 2013: Villiers welcomes news that Barnet Market will re-open at its upgraded site
January 2012: Villiers welcomes new owners for Barnet Market
Celebrating and conserving Barnet’s history
The 1471 Battle of Barnet was a significant turning point in the conflict which later became known as the Wars of the Roses. It brought three English Kings to Barnet – Edward IV, Henry VI and the future King Richard III.
With the increased interest in this period in history, and the forthcoming 550th anniversary of the battle in just a few years’ time, Theresa would like to see greater focus on this momentous historical event so it can bring more people to Barnet and help revitalise our local high street. Theresa backed Barnet Museum’s successful application to the Heritage Lottery Fund for research aimed at finding the correct location of the battle. She has been backing the hugely successful Barnet Medieval Festival which has taken place for the last two years.
Alongside Enfield Councillor Jason Charalambous, Theresa helped safeguard the future of the historic manor house in Trent Park. In 2016, she took the case to Enfield Council, Historic England and to the then-Culture Minister Ed Vaizey, arguing that planning permission should not be granted for any development unless the historical significance of Trent Park House was recognised and protected. Alongside with Cllr Charalambous, Theresa encouraged her constituents to sign a petition calling for the conservation of the manor house, retention of public access to key parts of the house and garden, and establishment of a museum. At a meeting in her constituency office with the owners, Berkeley Homes, she received assurances on all three of these important issues.
Lastly, Theresa has highlighted opportunities open to community groups and charities regarding funding from Heritage England to explore local history; and has encouraged them to apply. She is also campaigning against housing development on the historic Whalebones site in High Barnet.
March 2017: Sign on the dotted line: Villiers welcomes milestone in battle to save Trent Park
December 2016: Villiers welcomes investment in Battle of Barnet research
August 2016: Villiers encourages Barnet to commemorate its heritage and Celebrate England
August 2016: Trent Park: support for museum campaign
April 2016: Villiers continues campaign to save Trent Park
April 2016: Locating the Battle of Barnet: Villiers welcomes local discoveries
March 2015: Villiers backs campaign to save Trent Park