GENERAL Elections are extraordinary events. Normal life gets put “on hold” while we engage in a frenzy of campaigning, losing weight and sleep, watching every election news item breathlessly, and then it all comes down to a few moments in the early hours of the morning when the piles of paper ballots are counted and you know if you are to be hired or fired.

It was a strange election that gave both major parties some of their strongest results in decades but resulted in a hung parliament – hardly an ideal result with the start of the Brexit talks looming and almost weekly threats to national security on our streets.

At this crucial time, it is only right that we form a government in the national interest, and by working with the DUP, just as the Labour Party explored ahead of the 2010 election, we will be able to deliver the certainty and stability that current circumstances demand.

The national picture may have been mixed but I was delighted to be returned as your MP for the Devizes Constituency with an increased majority and share of the vote, and would like to say a big “thank you” to those who put their trust in me with a cross against my name thereby allowing me to get on with delivering results on the local issues that matter most like improved local healthcare, protected and improved train services at our local stations and support for the Armed Forces through the rebasing process and beyond.

However, regardless of how you voted, my job is to serve the people of this wonderful Constituency that we call home, so please do let me know what I can do to help.

I will be busy not only with my local priorities but also with my new job as a Minister of State overseeing Britain’s response to climate change and developing an industrial strategy to ensure our future prosperity.

It’s going to be a busy summer.