MP regrets that threats led him to stand down

Conservative MP for Finchley and Golders Green Mike Freer at the reopening of his office

A north London MP has said he will "always" have "regrets" at leaving his job following violent threats and a fire at his office.

Speaking as his constituency building reopened following the fire, Mike Freer, the Conservative MP for Finchley and Golders Green, said the blaze was "the final straw" and meant he was leaving "a job I love".

Two people have been remanded in custody on charges relating to the fire and are due to go on trial on 1 July.

Mr Freer, who is set to stand down at the next general election, said he had changed his approach to security following the incidents.

The damage following the fire on Christmas Eve

The damage to the constituency office was caused on Christmas Eve after a shed was allegedly set alight nearby, with the main building on Ballards Lane catching fire.

'Quite traumatic'

Speaking to BBC London News, Mr Freer said: "When I came back after the fire we saw the level of damage - the office was burnt out. The smell - it really was quite traumatic.

"My team had to relocate, couldn’t work here, so it’s a real pleasure to come back here because it really is the heart of the constituency for us," he said.

The MP told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that: "The total cost is about £120,000 worth of work, so that includes things like new windows, bits of the building had to be re-wired, obviously new computers, new phone systems."

He said the office was "completely destroyed" and added: "Four of our windows at the back of the building just melted, including a lot of the heat damage, smoke damage – even computers just melted."

Mike Freer said he was "looking forward" to whatever the new chapter in his life holds

Mr Freer said after suffering abuse and receiving threats of violence while working as an MP, the fire was "the final straw" and he announced he would stand down at the next general election after 14 years in the job.

The MP said he had come to the difficult decision after the fire and unrelated incidents involving "numerous run-ins with groups that wanted to either stab me or one guy who wanted to come and kill me".

The MP said he had improved his own personal security, as well as receiving "situational awareness training".

He said he had also been given a GPS-linked device with direct links to police, which could be activated if there was an immediate danger.

The fire at Mike Freer's office was one of two in the area on the same evening

The Conservative party chairman, Richard Holden, was at the re-opening of the constituency office and paid tribute to Mr Freer.

He said: "Mike has been a fantastic local MP here for a long period of time.

"It’s a very sad situation when you see MP’s feeling that they’re under so much pressure."

With additional reporting by Noah Vickers, Local Democracy Reporting Service