WEEKLY column by Thornbury and Yate MP Claire Young.

Last weekend, I was in sunny Brighton for Liberal Democrat Conference.

As a newly elected MP, it was a very different experience to the one I am used to, particularly given we now have so many more MPs.

The atmosphere at conference was upbeat – with many observers and journalists comparing it to a big family party.

It was by far one of the best attended events I’ve been to in my many years as a member and a great way to reconnect with friends old and new.

The thing I like most about Liberal Democrat Conferences is the fact that being there actually has a real purpose.

Unlike the other parties, what we stand for and our policies are decided by the membership, needing to be voted on and approved by our members.

Over the weekend we discussed many important topics, including our plan to fix NHS & Social Care, how we aim to support disadvantaged children in school, and proposals on how to end the sewage scandal once and for all.

The latter is a topic I care deeply about and I took the opportunity to tell my story of venturing out in the rain with a national journalist and photographer during the election campaign – in order to find the source of the Bristol Avon, one of the most polluted rivers in the country.

I am so pleased that we have led the way on this issue, exposing the filthy actions of negligent water companies who have spent years poisoning our precious natural environment.

We have shone a spotlight on this environmental vandalism and now we’ve set out how to fix it.

The current regulator Ofwat simply isn’t up to the job.

That’s why we want to establish a new Clean Water Authority, beefed up with new powers and more funding, so we can end the sewage scandal and ensure we are not paying the price for shareholder greed.