The contest to choose the new leader of the Conservative party and the next Prime Minister will now take place over the summer.
The final two candidates were chosen by MPs this week and now Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss will go around the UK seeking the endorsement of party members at a series of hustings.
We are lucky to have two very talented and experienced people who want the top job, so I know we will be in good hands, whoever wins.
I was very sad to see Boris Johnson resign. I have been a supporter of his and I believe he achieved a great deal.
However, his resignation was the right course of action for the country.
I made my views known to the whips as ministers started to resign. My view was that standards in public life are important and the circumstances of the appointment of the Deputy Chief Whip fell short of those standards.
It is important to remember the Prime Minister won an 80-seat majority. He is the man who got Brexit done when many said it couldn’t be done. He has shown great leadership during the pandemic and he has been steadfast in the face of Russian aggression in Ukraine. These are real achievements.
The key now is for us to move quickly forward as a party and a government in the best interests of our country. We need stability and real energy applied to tackling the challenges we face with the cost-of-living and the war in Ukraine. Much work has been done already but that needs to be built on by the new inhabitant of Downing Street.
I accepted a request from the Prime Minister to serve the Government and my country as Employment Minister and Assistant Whip.
The majority of my ministerial time will be at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) but I will help out the Whips’ Office when I am asked.
It is an honour and privilege to do so. The DWP is at the frontline of helping with the cost-of-living challenges we face and I will do my utmost to support the Secretary of State and her team.
We have record employment in this country. Much of this success has come because of innovative government programmes like Kickstart and Way2Work that have led to many thousands going into good jobs, training and apprenticeships.
Just before my appointment as Employment Minister, I visited Hertford Jobcentre Plus to be briefed by staff on the Way2Work campaign.
So far, the scheme has seen 547 starts into work in Hertford, Ware and Bishop’s Stortford. Across Hertfordshire the figure is 5397 starts into work. I am really looking forward to building on this sort of success in my new role.
Locally, I’ll be holding my own free jobs fair at Ware Priory on 9 September from 10am – 2pm. There will be something for everyone at the event in the shape of jobs, apprenticeships and volunteering opportunities. The local job centre will have a stand there along with other organisations.
This shows that my focus remains on my brilliant constituency of Hertford and Stortford where I will continue to undertake my important work helping constituents.