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Man charged with arson at Labour MP's office block

Tom BurgessNorth East and Cumbria
PA Media An aerial photo of the fire damaged office, the entire roof of the brick building has been destroyed with blackened beams visible.PA Media
A fire broke out at Sharon Hodgson's Washington office, near Sunderland, in the early hours of Thursday

A man has been charged with arson after a fire at a building containing the office of Labour MP Sharon Hodgson.

The blaze broke out at the Washington and Gateshead South MP's constituency office just after midnight on Thursday, Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service (TWFRS) said.

Joshua Oliver, 28, of no fixed abode, has been charged with arson and he will appear at Newcastle Magistrates' Court on Saturday.

A spokesperson for Hodgson said she "will not be deterred and will continue to support her constituents".

As well as the MP's office, charities and businesses also operate out of Vermont House, in Washington, near Sunderland.

Getty Images Sharon Hodgson talking in front of a microphone. She has short, brown hair with a full fringe and square glasses. She is wearing red lipstick and a pearl necklace. She is talking with her hands and is standing in front of a red Labour North banner.Getty Images
Labour's Sharon Hodgson has served as an MP since 2005

TWFRS sent seven appliances to the scene, which is in the Concord area of the town, and no causalities were reported.

Hodgson has served as MP for the area since 2005, when she was elected to the former Gateshead East and Washington West constituency.

She won the new Washington and Sunderland West seat in 2010 following boundary changes, keeping the seat until 2024 when she was elected to the new Washington and Gateshead South constituency.

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