So the both the General and Local Elections are over and the results are.........well, mixed to be honest - a drubbing for the Labour and Liberal Democrat parties in the General Election and losses for the Conservatives in the Local Elections.

The people have spoken and delivered very mixed messages across the country. However, in the London Borough of Bromley three Conservative MPs were returned to Parliament, all three with substantially more votes than last time and - bucking the trend across the rest of the country - an increased number of seats for the Conservatives in an already hugely Conservative Council.

The message delivered by the voters of Bromley was unequivocal - Bromley is different. We are no ordinary borough. Sure, there are a few in the north of the borough who love the fact that their life of slovenly excess is subsidised by the tax payer and so voted Labour. And yes, there were also a few in the south of the borough who are unable to read and/or comprehend a proper party manifesto and so voted Lib Dem. But the huge majority voted for “Yes please, more of the same”. No gains at all for Labour. And the number of Lib Dem seats halved.

This shows us what a unique borough Bromley is – and shows us why the time has come to give the borough independence. Bromley doesn’t conform to the rules. It is not like rest of London – indeed to the rest of the Country. Parliament pays scant regard to Bromley. The Mayor of London and the MPA ignore Bromley. The Scotland Yard hierarchy leave Bromley short of resources to police the borough. And yet, despite this neglect, Bromley continues to prosper – it is a clean borough, well run and maintained and a borough with low council tax and crime rates. It is a place people want to live.

Now imagine how much greater Bromley could be if it were run independently – if our locally elected representatives had responsibility for all of the decisions that Parliament and the London Assembly currently make. Imagine if they controlled the purse strings. Imagine if they could really hold the heads of public authorities to account, set their agenda and sack them if their performance was not up to standard. This election result has shown that here in Bromley we have total confidence in our elected representatives – and yet, when all’s said and done, they are largely omnipotent when it comes to major decisions, having to defer to the national Government or London Assembly – both who have no knowledge of, or interest in, Bromley.

Devolution has happened in Scotland and Wales. Now it’s Bromley’s turn – the people have spoken!