I grew up in Brentford, Chiswick, Hounslow and Isleworth and I still live and work in the constituency. This is why I am so determined about making the area a safer, greener and fundamentally better place to live. If elected as MP I have always said I would not claim any of the £17,669 per annum that husband and wife Alan and Ann Keen MP are each claiming as an 'Additional Costs Allowance'. Living in the constituency, just 9 miles from the city centre, I will use public transport to go to work, like most people do.

Given the current crisis in confidence I have decided to go further in clarifying the value for money I want to bring to the local community. I would not claim the London weighting allowance nor any food allowances. It is time to bring an end to this abuse of our political system and focus on the economic and climate crisis.

Want to know more about me? Read Colleen McDonnell's and Malcolm Richards' interviews with me for the Hounslow and Brentford Times.

Please make a donation to help the campaign

Since Labour won a majority of 67 on the support of 22 per cent of the electorate I have again backed the calls for electoral reform. If you are in favour of making the composition of the House of Commons more representative of the way the country casts its votes please sign up to support The Independent newspaper's Campaign for Democracy and Make My Vote Count.

The momentum for incorporating proportional representation into the electoral system is growing. The practicality of PR has been proved in the election of UK members of the European Parliament and the additional member systems in the Scottish and Welsh Assemblies. The case is strong, so what we need is pressure on the Prime Minister to force his hand. Email me directly if you would like to support my local efforts to drive the campaign forward.

Doctors and nurses are highly trained and dedicated health professionals. Ministers and civil servants are not - yet they continually bully your local hospital, doctors, and nurses. That's why I believe we must hack away the red tape, abolish absurd targets, and free our frustrated doctors and nurses from demoralising meddling - so they can put patients first. Millions would be saved and be re-directed to patients and those who care for them.

As a Liberal Democrat I am committed to creating a top class education system which gives everybody the best start in life, the best chance to succeed in work and the best opportunity to develop as individuals. This is why I support the abolition of all tuition fees, as the Lib Dems ensured was delivered in Scotland. Furthermore, as the government's £1bn Child Trust Fund is expensive, unnecessary and delivers few real benefits, the Lib Dems will instead use this money to improve early years support. This means reducing class sizes for the youngest children and setting up Early Years Centres to provide better health, education, social services and family support for every child - when it counts.

All Liberal Democrats policies have a green thread. This was one of the fundamental reasons why I first decided to join the Lib Dems over any other party. Climate change is a major threat to our planet - and urgent action is needed.

There are three changes that will make a huge difference to Hounslow's ecological footprint. First, I am pushing for more investment by Hounslow Council and developers in safe cycle lanes and increased public transport capacity. Second, I want to see Hounslow establish an 'Energy Services Company' (ESCO) so more of our heat and electricity comes from safe and renewable sources. Third, I want to substantially increase the supply of affordable, seasonal, organic and local food.

Check out my maiden speech: Enabling a one planet economy in Hounslow

So what would Liberal Democrats do to support our communities? We'd use five years of government to help communities be vibrant, successful and self-supporting, whether they are local, based around a workplace, a place of worship or ethnic background. For example, take housing. We want many more people to be able to afford a home. Instead of endlessly building on greenfields, we'd make sure that where possible empty buildings were converted into desirable and affordable properties by making changes to the tax system - renewing run-down communities, to make them thrive again.

Read more about my views on developing sustainable communities in Hounslow in the Liberal Democrat response to "Hounslow Plan 2006-10"

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