My background is in business. I started my own company from scratch, growing it for 20 years, creating jobs and generating tax revenues for the government to spend, before stepping back to seek election to Parliament in 2010. 

I have championed many issues in Westminster in the 12 years since then, such as:

- Fairer Education Funding – from September primary schools in our constituency will receive more funding per pupil than the national average for the first time,

- Farming Support – I led legislation that introduced fines of up to £100 million for supermarkets that deal unfairly with our farmers,

- Healthcare – as a treasury minster I helped to deliver the largest ever cash injection for the NHS and increased funding for mental health services to record levels, 

- Climate Change – I steered a major energy bill through the House of Commons which has reduced UK carbon emissions significantly over the past decade.

But one of the policy areas I have dedicated more time to than most has been our economy and support for businesses in particular.

A strong economy is the backbone of any society - it is how we fund our valued public services, provide welfare support for the most disadvantaged in our society state, ensure we have a strong national defence in an unstable and uncertain world, and offer young people the opportunity to fulfil their potential.

As chair of the House of Commons Treasury Select Committee I have been rigorous in my scrutiny of the Government’s economic policies and last week I challenged the former Chancellor in the Commons to cut taxes when inflation subsides (our exchange can be viewed at www.melstridemp.com).

I have no doubt that this is the Chancellor’s natural instinct, but he has been shackled by a global pandemic which saw our economy contract signficantly and then the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has pushed up energy, food and fuel prices and resulted in inflation levels not seen since the 1970s.

While significant tax cuts would not be affordable in the immediate economic climate I would like to see the Chancellor be bold and look at serious tax cuts for businesses when inflation falls. 

In particular I would urge the Government to look at tax breaks that drive up business investment.

One of the greatest challenges facing our economy is boosting productivity and this will only be achieved if businesses are encouraged to spend more on research and development and invest in new technology and machinery.

The future of the UK, in my view, is not as a high-tax nation but one which is especially powerful at enabling entrepreneurs to thrive.

We should ease the tax burden on businesses to help them stay competitive in a global economy, to grow and create jobs, to innovate and to make the capital investments they need to improve productivity.

Only by doing this will we achieve sustainable economic growth and drive up wages and living standards.

More from Mel at www.melstridemp.com or follow him on twitter @MelJStride.