Why Do I Deserve Your Vote on Thursday May 2nd

I have spent a great deal of time and effort over the election campaign knocking on doors, delivering leaflets and talking and listening to people.  This will come as no surprise to those that know me.  I am passionate about making sure I communicate, feel privileged to represent a Town as great as Whittlesey, and I never take my role lightly.

Earlier today someone suggested that my hard campaigning and the active way I debate issues on Facebook were a sign of panic.  I can say quite categorically it is not.  Good candidates will work for every vote, so even though I have been told continuously on the doorstep that people appreciate the work I have done and that they will support me, I believe people want someone who cares about the area, to work from start to finish in a campaIgn in order to prove that and to earn every vote.  That is what I am doing, it is what I have always done as a candidate.

But is that enough?  As someone that has represented Whittlesey for a number of years, I am pretty sure people will want to see a record of success.  Well, I believe I have that too:

• When I thought the funding for redevelopment of Sir Harry Smith was under threat before the last general election I visited and spoke to Shadow Ministers to make the case to keep the funding for Fenland.  At the end of that process, our Building Schools for the Future funding was retained which meant every Fenland Secondary school got a considerable refurbishment, including £8m worth of improvements at Sir Harry Smith.

• I fought a hard battle for the Sainsbury Supermarket solution for Whittlesey, a solution that I maintain was the best planning decision and was, without doubt, the most popular solution.

• I have continuously made the case for Kings Dyke crossing to be sorted.  This meant that when the County Council was looking for infrastructure improvements that might aid the economic development of Cambridgeshire, they were aware of our situation and have now approved the building of a bridge over the crossing and have set a timescale of 3 years for its delivery.

• When I did my survey last year, although there was overwhelming support for a supermarket, one of the biggest local concerns was about protection of the Town Centre. I then worked with fellow Conservative Councillors, Stephen Barclay MP and officers at both Fenland and Cambridgeshire County Council on plans to improve our Town Centre and draw more people in.  These plans are moving forwards, I have now seen the proposals and I hope they will be out for public consultation soon.

I realise there is much about me here (no apologies for that, I am seeking your support). But I do want to stress that these achievements are not all my work.  We are lucky in Whittlesey to have a great team of Conservative Councillors at every level of local Government who work well together, helped considerably by our Stephen Barclay MP who is more than willing to make the case for Whittlesey and, in my view, is doing an outstanding job as a Constituency MP.  A big part of that team, and someone who also has a proud record of achievement for Whittlesey is my fellow County Councillor and candidate for Whittlesey South, Ralph Butcher, one thing I know about Ralph is that he is not, and has never been, anyone's puppet, so please treat the nasty comments from one of his opponents with the contempt they deserve.

Keeping this team together in Whittlesey will mean maintaining a group that has proven, first and foremost, that we have our Town at heart. That is yet another positive reason to vote Conservative on Thursday.

I am going to list my specific pledges for Whittlesey for the next four years in a separate post, but I hope you have seen enough from this to see that I care about our Town and I have delivered for it.  If you do recognise that, please make sure you take a few minutes out of your day on Thursday 2nd May to vote for me.