Diary of a PPC: Andrea Leadsom (South Northamptonshire)

Each week a different PPC provides us with an insight into life as a candidate and gives us a flavour of their own campaign and interests. If you are a candidate and are keen to be featured, please email Jonathan Isaby.

This week we are featuring Andrea Leadsom, who is candidate for the newly-created constituency of South Northamptonshire. Andrea fought Knowsley South in 2005, but in this new seat she will be defending a notional Conservative majority of 11,356 in a seat which takes in a chunk of the existing Daventry constiruency and a smaller part of the current Northampton South seat. You can read more about Andrea and her campaign on her blog.

Monday 1st June

What a week! The countdown to the County and European Elections and also exam week for my sons.

Made a vast breakfast for my three kids then rushed through the school run so I could get to Moreton Pinkney in time for a coffee morning with one of our five East Midlands MEP candidates, Fiona Bulmer.  I was her host for the day - our job was to knock up our Conservative supporters and to make sure they turn out on Thursday.

After an hour at the coffee morning with local supporters, we set off to canvass the village in glorious sunshine. The expenses scandal is the biggest topic on the doorsteps, but we were also asked by a lady farmer what Conservatives would do about Bovine TB...

A quick lunch in Towcester followed by an afternoon of canvassing in West Hunsbury that left us sun burned and footsore.  We certainly found a lot of Conservatives who were considering voting UKIP in frustration at European red tape as much as the MPs' expenses scandal.

Time to nip home and kiss my 5 year old, Charlotte, good night before going out to the opening of the new Towcester Medical Centre.  Had a good chat with the senior GP partner about our recent campaign to stop the Government from taking away GPs' right to dispense from their surgeries.  He told me that the dispensing income is essential in order to cover the costs of the surgery.

Then it was time to pick my sons up from tennis at school and hear about the first exams, before a snatched meal with my husband, Ben, and onto the computer to blog my fury about the D-Day celebrations – how can France hold a commemoration of the Normandy landings without inviting the one Head of State who actually served in WWII?