I would like to start by wishing you all a Happy New Year. I believe 2020 marks the start of an exciting decade for our town and I intend to do all I can to make it a positive one for our constituency.

Winning the election to become the MP for Watford was a huge honour and I will work tirelessly over the coming years. The electorate have put their faith and trust in me, and I do not take this for granted.

During the election, I made several significant pledges. These included ensuring better support for mental health, tackling loneliness and ending the use of single-use plastic. These pledges were not made only to win the election; I wanted to win so I could deliver on them.

There are many local matters that I know are close to residents’ hearts too. These range from ensuring we get the best from the £400 million for West Herts Hospital Trust through to working with local government and challenging London Northwestern Railway to urgently improve services.

I pledged to put people before politics, which is why I intend to be active locally with regular surgeries and other initiatives. I am already champing at the bit to get things done, but I am also realistic that it will take time to achieve all the goals I have for Watford.

I will keep you all informed of my activities through newsletters, email, social media and more and I look forward to meeting and working with as many of you as possible.

  • Dean Russell is Conservative MP for Watford