Breakups are never easy. Often when relationships have run their course, people stay together even though it’s not the right thing to do.

Even when things have gone on too long, it’s hard to leave, because there are still nice moments.

When I decided to leave the Conservative Party, it was a plaster I knew I had to rip off. I had been a loyal member for 31 years. I had stuck by it through all its ups and downs. I’d won seats, helped win seats, lost seats, lost elections, but not for a moment did I consider leaving.

Even when it became a party that I no longer recognised, I held onto my love for the members and the activists, and some brilliant colleagues whom I will always admire greatly.

Many of them are steadfast in their traditional values and formed my political family that had given me the honour to represent them and where I live. But the fact is, many now feel that the........

© South Wales Argus