New Barnet mayor Councillor John Marshall has chosen Chai Cancer Care as one of his mayoral charities.

Councillor Marshall said he had long been impressed by its work. “I remember the comments of a friend whose wife was dying, who said he wished they had discovered Chai earlier.”

Hoping that the recognition would enhance Chai’s profile, the mayor added that there was no financial target “as you can never raise enough for such a good cause”.

Chai chief executive Elaine Kerr pointed out that “use of our services has more than doubled over the past year and keeping pace with demand is costly. The mayoral funds will make a great difference."