UNDERSTANDABLY there are very few people who pay too much attention to political party conferences but they are important indicators as to the Government’s thinking and the direction that we are going as a country.

This week the Conservative Party gathered in Birmingham and I believe that among the many announcements made there were two that particularly stood out.

Firstly, the decision to end the cap of 6,000 students a year attending medical school, allowing numbers to grow by as much as a quarter in 2018 and ensuring all young people with the capability to train as a doctor have the chance to do so. This will help support our local hospitals and surgeries. GP practices in Wiltshire have struggled to recruit the right numbers of staff, leaving services stretched and waiting times for a GP appointment unnecessarily long.

The Health Secretary used his speech on Tuesday to announce plans to train 1,500 more doctors a year in England and set us on course for the NHS to be “self-sufficient” within the next 10 years and not have to rely on foreign doctors to boost its numbers.

Secondly, as a hub of our armed forces, Wiltshire has a rich military history so the announcement that British soldiers will never again face a legal witch hunt, as Theresa May pledged that European human rights laws will no longer apply on the battlefield, was particularly significant.

Our troops put their lives on the line in order to defend us and do things that the vast majority of us would not be willing to do, in terms of putting their lives on the line and potentially paying the ultimate sacrifice to protect us.

Our armed forces should have the confidence that when they go into combat they are able to do what is necessary to keep us safe and to defend this country. What we have seen in recent years is human rights legislation being used to generate numerous vexatious claims and soldiers are finding themselves in some difficulty and concerned about the future as a result of that.

I think it is absolutely right that the Government should say to our troops "We are on your side", but it is also critical that if there are credible allegations of criminal behaviour, those need to be fully investigated.

This new policy will stop the industry of vexatious claims which has grown up with lawyers appearing to chase around to find anybody who will bring a claim against our troops.

Next week MPs return to Parliament and I am looking forward to continuing my work on behalf of my constituents.

I hold surgeries every Friday as well as regular meetings throughout the constituency. To book an appointment please call (01249) 704465.