CONSERVATIVES in Ellesmere Port and Neston have begun the search for a new parliamentary candidate.

Tories in the area will be hoping their chosen man or woman can defeat the sitting Labour MP Justin Madders at the next election, which must take place before 2022 - and could be much sooner.

The news was announced in the week that the Conservative Party Conference, held in the North West, set out the Conservatives' key campaign messages: get Brexit done to invest more in schools, the NHS and the police.

At the 2017 General Election the Tories received 18,747 votes in Ellesmere Port and Neston, their best result since 1992. But it still fell far short of the 30,137 votes secured by Mr Madders.

Lee Evans, Chairman of Ellesmere Port & Neston Conservatives, said: "Whoever is selected as our candidate will take the fight to Labour with a clear message: you can’t take Ellesmere Port and Neston for granted. Because that’s exactly what has happened. Labour has taken our votes for granted at General Elections and think they can ignore our votes in the EU referendum.

"We Conservatives believe politicians don’t get to pick and choose which votes they respect. The next Conservative MP for our towns will actually respect the wishes of their constituents and deliver for all of us in Ellesmere Port and Neston."

The group has confirmed that all qualifying Conservative members will be invited to vote for which candidate will represent them at the next election.

Find out more about Ellesmere Port & Neston Conservatives by visiting their Facebook pages.