THANK you to the 34,703 people who voted to re-elect me at the General Election.

It is humbling to receive more than 61 per cent of the vote on a record turnout but regardless of your political preferences, I will strive to represent each and every one of you to the best of my ability. Please don't hesitate to contact me if I can ever do anything to help.

Nationally, the Conservatives also got a big increase in vote share, which at every election for decades would have been enough to get a big majority. However, the collapse of the smaller parties’ vote and an increase in turnout by young people for Labour - particularly in university towns - meant Jeremy Corbyn did surprisingly well.

My priorities for West Worcestershire in a minority Government remain the same. I will continue to speak up for our local schools as we work towards a fairer funding deal. I will continue to lobby for the right funding for our local NHS. There is still much to do to improve our infrastructure. We hope to have news soon on the bid for funding to double the Carrington Road bridge and there is still work to be done to lobby for improvement to rail services as well as securing further investment for better rural broadband and mobile connections.

As the Conservatives, Labour and the DUP all supported the referendum decision to leave the EU, the negotiations will continue and we all hope our European negotiating partners will agree to our clear and sensible proposals.

I was pleased to be reappointed to my role at the Ministry of Defence, in charge of the £178 billion military equipment budget. As I write the new aircraft carrier is setting sail from Rosyth for sea trials, while our new F35B short take-off vertical landing jets are flying Stateside.

On Armed Forces Day, many said words of thanks to all of those who work to keep us safe and secure – the armed forces, the security services and the emergency services who have all been amazing through a number of terrible incidents in our country in the last months.

Whether it is the terrible fire at Grenfell Tower or the senseless slaughter of young people in Manchester, I have nothing but huge respect for those who run towards danger with courage and resilience.

They do an amazing job.