Kingswood MP invites local businessman to talk to Tory Party conference

Kingswood businessman Dave Lake took centre stage at the Tory Party conference in Birmingham this afternoon.

Mr Lake, MD of Dok-Tek Systems, of Woodlands Way, was invited to the conference by Kingswood's newly-elected MP Chris Skidmore.

Mr Skidmore spoke about the work he did when he was the constituency's candidate, setting up the Kingswood Jobs Club to help get local unemployed people back into work.

Mr Lake, whose firm is a market leader in making LED traffic lights for warehouses for firms including Tesco, Sainsbury's and Asda, was a volunteer adviser at the jobs club. He spoke to the conference about his business and his loyal workforce and said that under Labour proposals at the last election, firms would have been taxed "before a penny profit was made" and he had been ready to move his work abroad. He was applauded loudly by the audience.

Mr Skidmore spoke of his pride in representing the Kingswood area, where he was born and grew up, and said: "I am determined to do all I can to help local people."

He said that as a candidate it has not been enough to knock on doors and delivers leaflets a few weeks before the election and he had set up the jobs club to help people who had been made unemployed through no fault of their own.

The club helped them with writing CVs and interview techniques and inspired them to find work.

"People in Kingswood are proud to call themselves working class," he told delegates.