Kisty Williams AM: A TOTAL of 10,005 people – 19 per cent of eligible voters in the constituency - signed the petition to ‘recall’ the former Member of Parliament. It was close to doubling the 5,303 signatures that were required.

Earlier this week the Speaker of the House of Commons confirmed that the former MP has been removed from his position. It is only the second time an MP has been removed through this process, which has brought considerable attention to Brecon and Radnorshire – for all the wrong reasons.

A by-election will be held in the coming months. Our communities sent a clear message that Brecon and Radnorshire deserves better, and the by-election is the chance to ensure that happens.

It will be a choice between a Conservative Party too busy fighting amongst themselves to focus on what’s important, or the Liberal Democrats who will stand up for people and the services they rely on.

In Jane Dodds, the Welsh Liberal Democrats have a strong, Welsh speaking candidate with a proven track record of campaigning in Powys. I will be campaigning alongside Jane and I hope you are able to support her.

It will, of course, be a particularly significant time for Brecon and Radnorshire’s new MP. The threat of a no-deal Brexit - that would decimate our agriculture and local economies - simply must be avoided. The Conservative Party’s approach to Brexit has been to side-line Welsh interests, so getting Brecon and Radnorshire’s needs heard will be a challenge, but it is a challenge that must be picked up.

The new MP will also have to consider wider issues than Brexit. By voting for Jane Dodds, you will be voting to loosen the shackles of excessive Conservative austerity. You will be voting to tackle injustice and voting to build a fairer society. Jane, a qualified children’s social worker who has volunteered and worked in refugee camps, not only believes in these values but lives and embodies them.

Make no mistake, this by-election will be an opportunity to say we want things to change. It is a chance to reject the Conservative’s broken, party-before-country politics that continues to let so many people down, in favour of a better path.