I am writing this week’s column from the Liberal Democrat Party Conference in Glasgow.

It’s been a busy week, and I’ve made three speeches from the conference stage.

The first was in a debate about how to make sure our party encourages more people to get involved in politics. I spoke about Ben, a young local entrepreneur I met for coffee in Bradford on Avon, after which he became a Liberal Democrat member.

He has a keen interest in politics and a lot to offer, and I talked about the need to open up politics and make it more welcoming to new people like him, so we can all benefit from their perspectives and ideas.

Later in the week, I explained to the conference how a meeting I had with Corsham Youth Council has helped write our manifesto.

They told me what a difference it would make to them to be able to afford public transport so they can get where they need to go without relying on mum and dad’s taxi service. This week, we’ve announced proposals to give young people aged 16-21 a bus pass that gets them two thirds off the price of their fares, to make travel to school, college and work more affordable. You can catch a video – just three minutes – of the speech online: bit.ly/opportunity-for-everyone.

Throughout our conference, we’ve been setting out our record of action in coalition government and our vision for Britain in the next parliament: building a stronger economy and a fairer society to create opportunity for everyone.

The Liberal Democrats have invested heavily in apprenticeships to give young people the opportunity to gain the skills they need for a rewarding career.

Lib Dem Business Secretary Vince Cable has doubled the number of apprenticeships offered every year so that since 2010 more than 2,500 people have begun one here in the Chippenham constituency. On Monday, he announced plans to raise the wages of thousands of young apprentices by more than £1 an hour.

As I told the conference, in this Parliament the Liberal Democrats have helped lift our country from rescue to recovery. In the next, our ambition should be to lead it from recovery to renewal: unlocking opportunity for everyone.

My next constituency surgeries will be at Bradford on Avon library on Friday, from 10am–11.30am; and in the same place on Friday, October 24, from 10am–11.30am.