Stephen Barrett, the Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for Hertsmere, has explained why you should vote for him in the 2019 General Election.

"My name is Stephen Barrett and I'm standing to be your Liberal Democrat MP because, despite the current mess, I'm optimistic that with Liberal Democratic policies we can build a brighter future.

I believe that politics shouldn't be about offering the moon without explaining how it is all to be paid for.

So, we won't be hiking up borrowing to pay for ideology and Brexit. Instead, we will stop Brexit and invest the £50 billion remain bonus in schools and tackling inequality.

I work as a school business leader managing the budget of a large comprehensive secondary school. That keeps me grounded.

I talk every day with teachers and see how they work tirelessly to improve young lives, but I also see the enormous challenges that the continuing financial squeeze has caused.

I've worked with education enrichment charities and I manage the school budget carefully, but schools desperately need what the Lib Dems promise: 20,000 more teachers as part of an extra £10 billion a year for education.

I am also a Liberal Democrat councillor. I champion the causes of my residents and I'm heavily focused on our local climate action plan. Nationally, the Lib Dems will tackle the climate emergency with more renewable energy, and by insulating homes and planting 60 million trees a year.

I am committed to remaining in Europe because I believe that will make us stronger, more prosperous and allow us to keep the United Kingdom united.

I know many of you voted leave but I believe that many of you did so because you were lied to. You were told we would have our cake and eat it. It hasn't turned out like that. That's why I am optimistic that many of you will vote Lib Dem because like me you want change for the better.

If you vote for me you will get someone with integrity, passion and ambition who cares for this community and has his feet firmly on the ground."

If you want to apply to vote in this election please go to gov.uk/register-to-vote by 11.59pm on November 26.