Reform's newest MP, Andrew Rosindell, will be on the BBC's Politics London programme tomorrow morning. And according to a preview clip the MP for Romford will say this...
One of the things I'm passionate about is Havering, which is my borough, not being tied to the Mayor of London, and I would like Havering to be more of an independent borough, and Nigel has said to me that Havering would have that choice, so we could actually be independent from Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London and the City Hall bureaucracy, so I'm really keen on that.
Well of course he'd say that.
Andrew has always been an Essex boy at heart, despite being born a year after his beloved borough of Romford was absorbed into Greater London. Hence he's been fighting a one-man battle to get Havering absorbed back into Essex ever since becoming an MP in 2001, pleading with all the governments of the day to let them back in. His latest wheeze was an adjournment debate last May entitled Havering Borough and Essex Devolution, a valiant attempt to take advantage of upcoming administrative reorganisation and whisk Romford out of London's orbit altogether.
Now is the time to consider Havering’s future. With devolution for what is termed Greater Essex now being implemented, this must surely be the right moment to examine a change that would give the people of Romford, Hornchurch, Upminster and Rainham hope that we could be part of something that better suits our local needs and goes with the grain of our historical identity.
Evidence he presented to Parliament included:
» My house has a Romford, Essex RM1 postcode.
» My home telephone number has a Romford, Essex 01708 dialling code.
» The church where I was christened and confirmed falls within the diocese of Chelmsford, Essex.
» Essex county cricket club is our local cricket team, and we support it strongly.
» Romford football club are part of the Essex senior football league.
» Romford golf club is part of the Essex Golf Union.
» Our local bowling clubs for Romford, Gidea Park and Hornchurch all fall under the Essex County Bowling Association.
» The Bedfords Park visitor centre in the historic Essex village of Havering-atte-Bower is managed by Essex Wildlife Trust.
» Our water supply comes from Essex and Suffolk Water.
QED.
The Minister for Local Government and English Devolution threw polite cold water on the proposals, pointing out that plans for reorganisation are restricted to the shire counties and Romford isn't in one.
It is currently not envisaged that the boundaries of Greater London will be changed, or that the proposed Greater Essex mayoral combined county authority will be expanded, although the latter would be possible at a later date should it be locally desired and should statutory tests be met. (Jim McMahon)
But imagine a future in which a Reform government takes power and a Reform government is keen to please a Reform MP with his greatest desire. What might be the consequences if Romford, Rainham and Upminster were no longer in London?
London would look different.
A huge lump would be chopped off London's eastern edge, reducing the area of the capital by 7%. The easternmost point in London would become the Dartford Creek flood barrier rather than a muddy field far beyond the M25. London would be five miles narrower than before. One-sixth of London's Green Belt would vanish overnight.
London would lose 260,000 residents, reducing its population by just 3%. It'd become a younger city, a more left wing city and a less white city. A greater proportion of its residents would rent. It might also become a happier city because the moaners had left.
Havering becoming an independent borough would remove a large hospital from London, also a windmill, 18 secondary schools, seven miles of motorway and three Parkruns.
Havering would no longer have to follow what Andrew calls the Mayor's woke agenda. It'd remove the borough from ULEZ which would please its drivers no end. Residents would also no longer have to pay the Mayor of London's precept, currently £490 for a Band D property, but might end up paying more to a devolved authority once the rest of London's support was removed.
And what would TfL do? They'd still carry on running trains here, just as they operate trains in Herts, Bucks and Essex. But it'd look odd if they carried on supporting the Liberty line, given that the runt of the Overground would be entirely outside London. Also there'd be thirteen bus routes expelled entirely into Essex (165, 193, 248, 252, 256, 294, 346, 365, 370, 372, 375, 496, 498), none of which TfL would be obligated to operate and which a new Essex authority might not feel able to support. Havering's bus network could significantly deteriorate.
The London Loop would need redrawing, condensing the last four sections into a shortcut down the Rom valley.
The Freedom Pass (and 60+ Oyster) would no longer apply to Havering. That'll be why Andrew pre-emptively introduced the Transport for London (Extension of Concessions) Bill in Parliament last year. This would "Require Transport for London to enable any local authority in England which is served by a Transport for London route, or by a route to which a TfL concessionary scheme applies, to opt into concessionary fare schemes, including the Freedom Pass." Obviously it stands no chance, but a later Reform government could definitely push it through just to piss London off, so watch this space.
Finally, people who go on and on and on about Romford being in Essex would finally shut up because it would be.
Of course we're unlikely to get a new national government before 2029, so Andrew potentially getting his own way is a long way off. Also local government reorganisation in Essex should have been completed by then and nobody's going to want to do it again. Also the next City Hall election will have taken place a year earlier and the new Mayor might no longer be a Labour bogeyman.
It's never going to happen, Andrew's administrative wet dream will not manifest in real life. But imagine if it did. Residents of Havering might find out they lose more than they gain, and Londoners might be delighted to see the back of them.
