The first thing we need to spread growth and prosperity more widely around our country is a Central Bank in tune with current worldwide Central Bank thinking and concerned to promote growth.

From India to the USA, from Australia to Brazil, from Turkey to Mexico Central Banks have been cutting interest rates to stimulate more growth against a backdrop of world manufacturing recession.

In the last month the Fed has put $150bn into markets to facilitate more productive bank lending, whilst the ECB is now creating Euro20bn extra each month to boost money growth. The Bank of Japan remains on full throttle Quantitative easing.

The UK has the slowest rate of money growth in the advanced world thanks to the Bank of England’s do nothing policy. Time for the Bank to get with the mood of the country which wants more prosperity.

The Prime Minister had no choice but to hold an election close to Christmas. The old Parliament had degenerated into an uncontrollable shouting match, preventing government and making us look ludicrous abroad. When you can not even pass a budget it’s time to ask the people.

Necessity does not  make Christmas a good time to be campaigning and I trust it does not become a habit. It was cold and wet for much of the time, with slippery steps and paths, more dangerous in the dark when the sodden leaves were concealed in the shadows. The Labour candidate in Wokingham had an unfortunate fall at the start of the election and had to struggle on crutches for most of the time. I felt sorry for her, as it must be  so frustrating and painful when you wish to dash around to meet as many people as possible.

I had to hone my skills at carrying a bundle of leaflets in  one hand, an umbrella in the other, and then working how to battle with the letter boxes near the ground with highly sprung backs and tough brushes. If you abandoned the umbrella the leaflets soon got ruined  by the rain. It was necessary to locate the prevailing wind and park the umbrella where it could not blow away whilst tackling the more aggressively defended  letter boxes.

We candidates are all volunteers, and I am not seeking any sympathy for us. We do not have to do it, but we did  have to fight that feeling of wistfulness as we watched everyone else getting ready for Christmas. Through lit windows we saw the trees and tinsel appear. The outsides of some houses were joyously lit up by great light displays or illuminated Santas and reindeer, making it a bit easier to find our footing as we went from house to house. We returned to our  homes converted into leaflet stores and canvass offices feeling a bit like the person made to stay on duty during the party.

For MPs rightly stripped of office as soon as Parliament dissolves it is perhaps the busiest season for official duties. They  all had to be binned. The two wreaths I had bought to lay at local war memorials sit in the corner of my office. I had to cancel my attendance at the Winter Carnival, pull out of reading a lesson at a civic service, and was told politely I was not wanted at the schools’ carol concert which is a highlight of the year in Wokingham Borough. There was no question of dropping in on nativity plays, charity events or other Christmas specials. I will return to Westminster on Monday to a pile of Christmas cards ordered well before the election which could not be signed or sent as they have on them the Portcullis logo and MP designation.

The public was generally  understanding of visitors after dark as they sensed the importance of the election and the limited time for parties to get their message across.

I hope in future we return to spring or early summer elections. There is so much more daylight, it is a  bit warmer, and the official calendar is less packed with must do events even allowing for the popularity of summer fetes. I like Christmas and it will great this week-end to be able to do some Christmas shopping and decorate my home. I will get Christmas done!

I would like to thank all those who supported me in the election.

I will take up those issues which many of you stressed to me mattered, in the new Parliament.

I promised to work had for policies which advance the country’s prosperity, and to work with the Council on the many local planning, environmental and transport issues which affect our daily lives in  the area.

I also wish to reassure those Remain voters who voted for parties offering a second referendum that I have every belief that we can be better off out of the EU. I know many of you are concerned that the UK will lose income and wealth from our exit. I  am setting out policies that promote greater growth as we leave, in part by using freedoms we gain and in part by changing the economic policy successive governments have been following whilst in.

I will of course wish to represent you all to the best of my ability. Where you have legitimate worries about policy direction and government management I will seek to find ways to make things better.

The deliberate log jam created by the last Parliament was preventing good government, undermining us abroad and seeking to subvert the results of the EU referendum. We had to ask the voters to make a decision.

They have done so in a clear way. There was a big choice to make. Did they want a Corbyn led government with massive promises to increase spending, borrowing and taxes, or did they want a moderate reflation of the economy with some spending increases for important services and some tax cuts? Did they trust Labour or the Conservatives with the security and future of our country. They gave a convincing answer last night.

There was also the question of how many voters did wish to go back on the referendum to leave the EU. Prime Minister in waiting Jo Swinson offered the country the choice to revoke our application to leave by a simple repeal vote in Parliament. It was a bold and radical proposal. Just 11% backed it, and her own voters instead asked her to leave Parliament. I hope those who keep telling us people want to remain will reflect on this result.

Labour says they lost because the failed to back Brexit, having done so in 2017 when they got a better result. Doubtless there was some of that in the poor results they achieved, but there was also the prior questions about economic management and direction and style of leadership which dominated in many discussions.

Now this new Conservative majority government has two immediate tasks. It does need as the PM says to “get Brexit done”, which means taking back control of our money, borders and laws, and means negotiating that Free Trade Agreement the EU has promised in principle. It also means an early budget, as we are in urgent need of a stimulus, at a time of world slowdown and worldwide manufacturing recession.

May you all vote wisely. It’s your decision.

I have said all I wish to say about this election  and now look forward to the results tomorrow morning.