Proud to represent people of Stirling

First things first: thank you. I am immensely proud and humbled to have been elected to serve as your Member of Parliament.

Not since Michael Forsyth in 1997 has a Scottish Conservative and Unionist held this office. This is a huge honour and I am very aware of the responsibility that now rests upon me and what you, my constituents, expect from their MP.

Let me be very clear from the outset: you, the people of Stirling, are my priority and I will represent you individually and collectively to the best of my abilities at all times.

I am looking forward to getting out and about across the constituency as much as possible, as often as possible and meeting as many of you as I can.

Any issues raised with me will be pursued efficiently, investigated thoroughly and responded to clearly. We will use our local councillors, MSPs and my office to ensure the representation you get is the best possible at all times.

We are all very much aware of the challenges our country faces as we seek the best possible deal for the UK, Scotland and Stirling as we leave the European Union. In the next two years I will do everything I can to ensure the tone and content of these complex negotiations we are about to embark on address our priorities.

I have no doubt there will be difficult times ahead. How we choose to face them is the key. We must seize the opportunities that now lie before us. We must be bold, confident and above all united if we are to achieve the outcomes we are all seeking.

Free from existing EU restrictions, there are untapped markets across the world to pursue and as your MP my priority will be to help seek them out while promoting our great businesses every day to every new potential market opportunity.

I am very much looking forward to working with the varied business sectors across the constituency. To that end I will be organising a number of initial meetings to facilitate discussions.

The much talked-about City Region Deal will be another priority. The exciting and diverse range of projects is ambitious and has the potential to transform our area into an economic and cultural powerhouse. I am very proud that this deal was secured for Stirling by Scottish Conservatives with the investment led by the UK Government.

However, that is only the first step. How this investment is used over the next few years will be crucial. We must ensure it is targeted correctly. This really is a “once in a generation opportunity” to unlock potential across the constituency and make a real difference to our economy and communities.

More than 30,000 people in Stirling voted for parties that oppose a second independence referendum. The message to the SNP could not be clearer and I urge Nicola Sturgeon to listen and remove the issue from their agenda. The Scottish Parliament has substantial powers and responsibilities. It is about time they were used to address the poor performance of our economy, the shocking decline in our once world-class education system, our struggling police service and the growing crisis in the NHS.

We must get this divisive issue off the table because we simply cannot afford our time and effort being diverted as we enter one of the most important periods in our nation’s history.

All my energies and those of the other 12 Scottish Conservative MPs, the fourth-largest block of MPs in Westminster, must be concentrated on constructive advocacy for Scotland on every issue and not wasted combatting an increasingly marginalised obsession.

All my energies must be concentrated on constructive advocacy for Scotland