Last week, Thirsk and Malton Conservatives reached a very clear democratic decision not to re-adopt Anne McIntosh MP as our prospective Parliamentary candidate.

This brings to a close an extraordinarily painful episode. It has taken too long to resolve and has been made more acrimonious by party rules.

During the ballot itself, the democratic process was marred by the publication of a confidential party document on Anne McIntosh’s campaign website and elsewhere.

In the media frenzy which followed, some allegations were made against me and my colleagues.

So let me say again that every action we have ever taken in relation to bringing forward this ballot was done in good faith, under advice from regional and, later, national officials of the party.

I can confirm also that we expect Anne McIntosh to serve as our Conservative MP until the next General Election.

Her threat after the ballot result “to stand for Thirsk, Malton & Filey constituency at the next election”

is however ill-judged and unwelcome — and we urge her to reflect upon it, particularly in relation to her declarations of continuing loyalty to the Conservative Party.

Whether or not you believe Anne has been an effective MP — a matter on which there are genuine differences of opinion — it is beyond dispute that she has divided our association and constituency. We must all move on.

In that spirit, a selection process will go forward as soon as possible, under party rules, to find a new candidate.

There is not and never has been a preferred candidate. Nor has there ever been any prejudice whatsoever in this association against female candidates. We shall hope to receive the widest possible range of applications from qualified candidates for the privilege of representing Thirsk and Malton in the next Parliament.

It is thanks to the Conservatives that Britain's long-term economic plan is working and that immigration and crime are down, but there is still much more work to do. We hope every Conservative in Thirsk and Malton will now unite and work for victory in 2015.

Peter Steveney, Chairman, Thirsk and Malton Conservatives