STEPHEN GILBERT CHOSEN TO FIGHT FOR HEART OF CORNWALL

10.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Thu 5th Jul 2007

Stephen Gilbert, 30, has been chosen as the Lib Dem's choice to run for the new St Austell and Newquay seat in the next General Election.

The next General Election, expected anytime between now and 2010, will see Cornwall split into six seats rather than five as the boundaries for the county's parliamentary constituencies are redrawn.

Matthew Taylor MP's recent decision to stand down at the next election as representative for Truro and St Austell after twenty years means that the Liberal Democrats are selecting new parliamentary candidates to fight for both the St Austell and Newquay and the Truro and Falmouth seats.

Following a vote count, Stephen Gilbert, a business consultant born and bred in Cornwall, was overwhelmingly elected by the St Austell and Newquay Liberal Democrat members as their candidate for the next election.

Commenting, Mr Gilbert said: "I am absolutely over the moon. I was up against a strong line up, and it is a real vote of confidence to have been chosen to represent the Liberal Democrats in my home community. My first priority is going to be affordable housing for local people - I know how hard it is for local young people to get on the property ladder. I also want to join the hardworking Cornish Lib Dem team in Parliament to fight for a fair funding deal for the Cornish NHS, and to put right the damage done to our local hospitals by successive Labour and Conservative governments. You can also expect to see me out on the doorstep campaigning to save our post offices and lower our water bills - and in the tradition of Cornish liberals like David Penhaligon and Matthew Taylor doing my best to help every single constituent irrespective of party politics."

Mr Gilbert spent his childhood and teenage years in St Austell and Fowey, before going on to study International Politics at University.

Giving his strong support for Mr Gilbert's selection, St.Austell's present MP Matthew Taylor MP who will stand down at the next election said: "Stephen is an excellent choice and will do the people of St Austell & Newquay - and indeed Cornwall - proud. I will be working closely with him in the lead up to the next election and I know he will prove an invaluable voice for Cornwall."

Dan Rogerson, who as MP for North Cornwall represents Newquay on the existing constituency boundaries, said he looks forward to working with Stephen as a team for Newquay until the General Election: After completing his studies Mr Gilbert worked for the then local Liberal Democrat MEP, Robin Teverson, helping with the county's successful bid for Objective One funding from Europe. During that time, at just 21 years old, he was also elected to represent St Blazey on Restormel Borough Council.