It has been great to be out speaking to local residents and I very much appreciate the warm welcome I have been getting from so many people.

Last week Parliament dissolved at midnight on Wednesday and as a result there are now no MPs until after the election. However, I want constituents to be aware that my office is still open and available to assist anyone who needs urgent help. Please get in touch.

I am very much aware that this is going to be the toughest of the fourth elections I have faced. But I hope to be re-elected to continue to serve and represent the place that has always been my home and that I care passionately about. Over the past 9 years I believe I have demonstrated my commitment to address the challenges we face head on and work to realise the amazing opportunities we have before us. I have a proven track record of delivering the investment and support our constituency needs. My work has not finished. There is much more for me to do and I relish the opportunity of making my case to the people of our constituency to continue as your MP.

Rishi Sunak’s announcement last week that he’d conscript people into National Service was not just a bad joke for the young people who've been abandoned by this Government, but a betrayal of Cornwall. Why? Because the Conservatives say they'd fund it by pulling millions of pounds from our county.

Cornwall's allocation from the Shared Prosperity Fund was already a significant downgrade and there’s been widespread anger since Boris Johnson reneged on promises Cornwall would receive “the funding that it needs”.

With above average child poverty levels, housing waiting lists among the highest nationally, and weak infrastructure, Cornwall needs a plan for growth and investment. Now, thanks to the Tories’ National Service election gimmick, we’re to be left with nothing.

Cornwall doesn't want (or need) to be a charity case. That’s why much of the previous investment hasn’t hit home for us. That’s why Labour’s industrial strategy will specifically target our most promising industries, whether that be critical minerals or the offshore wind opportunity in the Celtic Sea, to train local people up with skills that’ll last a lifetime and put pounds in the pocket of Cornish families, rather than the white elephant projects that we’ve become accustomed to in Cornwall.

Housing, it’s cost and the loss of rental accommodation to Air BNB is the top issue raised across the St Austell & Newquay constituency, revealed in the second annual review of the local responses to the Lib Dem Cost of Living surveys. Exceeding even the top issue nationally, the crisis in the NHS, that came in second. Responders to the survey were particularly concerned at the housing difficulties facing young people.

The cost of living was rising for everyone for food, petrol and above all for energy, with over 86 per cent supporting the Lib Dem call for a tougher one-off windfall tax on oil and gas super-profits.

The improvement in inflation figures was not reflected in the weekly household costs; these were still rising. But there was little use reported of public transport, bus travel being the one area where costs were unchanged.

While more people noted the effect of the freezing of the tax bands, many responders were still not aware that they were affected by a bigger percentage of their income being taken in tax or why they were being taxed for the first time. That’s why they call it “stealth taxation”.

Cornwall’s natural environment is our greatest asset, but it’s under threat from destructive ‘development’ that has done little to improve the lives of local people. I know it’s possible to make positive changes that make a real difference to the lives of people in our communities, because I’ve helped make quite a few myself.

As your MP, I’d work hard to do this for the people of St Austell and Newquay. My focus will be on Cornwall and what’s best for its residents, looking at developing opportunities for meaningful and well-paid jobs and apprenticeships. Finding sustainable solutions for local housing will be a priority. Cornwall can’t be an afterthought for politicians in Westminster – and only thought of as a holiday destination. Our families need homes and secure employment opportunities, our environment must be protected and the most vulnerable in our society must be cared for well.

In 2022 I led a team that brought the swimming pool and sports centre in Wadebridge into community ownership, saving it from closure. I am still a trustee of the Charity Friends of Wadebridge Leisure Centre. The facility is currently undergoing a £1.6-million refurbishment to make it sustainable for future generations to use.