On Saturday night, I was delighted to welcome Sam Gyimah as the newest member of the Liberal Democrats. Sam has been a personal friend of mine for more than 10 years, and I know him to be a thoughtful, intelligent and principled politician. He will be a fantastic addition to our growing party.

Sam’s defection, hot on the heels of other new additions from across the political spectrum, speaks to the position our politics is now in. We are seeing a fundamental realignment, away from the old Left versus Right divide.

The Liberal Democrats are now the clear rallying point for those who want to see a society that is open, fair and inclusive. Those are the values that I got into politics to fight for, and it is those values that unite the ever-increasing number of people who are joining our party.

Among them is Sadiq Khan’s former policing adviser, Leroy Logan, who was due to stand for Labour in the London Assembly elections. Instead, he joins Siobhan Benita’s team as an adviser, after citing concerns about rising knife crime in the capital.

While the Lib Dems are welcoming like-minded new members, Labour and the Conservatives are pushing people away. In both the old parties, anything other than absolute loyalty to the ideological dogma at the top is purged. The Conservatives have forcibly removed Ken Clarke and Nicholas Soames, the grandson of Winston Churchill, while Labour is now no longer a place where Alastair Campbell, a stalwart of the New Labour government, is welcome.

It is a concerning trend in our politics that disagreement is not met with understanding and debate but with anger and exile. We have lost the art of disagreeing well with each other and it makes our politics more febrile and divisive.

While those parties continue to shrink, it is the Liberal Democrats who are on the up. Since the beginning of May, we’ve have gained tens of thousands of members, more than 700 councillors, and 15 MEPs, including three in London. Our party has been further bolstered by the arrival of seven new MPs. We are building a political movement that can stand up to the forces of nationalism and populism that dominate our politics.

Those forces are most obvious in our politics when it comes to Brexit. David Cameron has said in his new book that some people will never forgive him for calling the referendum. We are where we are now because he put managing the internal battles of the Conservative Party above the future of our country.

Brexit is dominating our political conversation, and the voters deserve to know where the main parties stand. It is only the Liberal Democrats that offer a clear “stop Brexit” position. The Conservatives say they want a deal but all the evidence is that they are committed to ripping the UK out of the EU in a no-deal.

As for the Labour Party, its policy is so unclear that it’s almost comical. Its current position is genuinely that if it wins the next election, it will negotiate its own Brexit deal but leave open the possibility that it campaigns against that deal in a referendum, with members of the front bench being on different sides. I’m amazed that Labour MPs can say it out loud and keep a straight face.

"Brexit is dominating our political conversation, and voters deserve to know where the parties stand"

Liberal Democrats will continue to fight for a People’s Vote, so that the people can have the final say. However, in the event that we find ourselves in a general election campaign before a People’s Vote, then our policy is crystal clear. If the country votes in a general election for a Liberal Democrat majority government, then we will revoke Article 50 and put a stop to this Brexit chaos. If you vote for the party who wants to stop Brexit, then stopping Brexit is exactly what you will get.

Remaining in the European Union is the only way to tackle the big issues that our country faces. It is the only way we can tackle the big issues that London faces. Every second spent on discussing Brexit is time we are not spending on tackling knife crime, or the failed war on drugs.

Those are the issues we should be talking about, because they are the issues that affect Londoners on a daily basis. Our candidate to be Mayor, Siobhan Benita, has set out clear plans, by pursuing a legalisation of cannabis that would free up police time for tackling serious, violent crime that is a concern to so many.

Our conference this weekend has been a hive of positivity, and it is clear that the Liberal Democrats are on the up again. Boosted by our recent successes, including topping the poll in London at the European Parliament election, people are flocking to us because they believe that Britain deserves better than what is on offer from the two main parties.

I am hugely ambitious for my party because I am ambitious for our country. I believe that Britain deserves better than Jeremy Corbyn or Boris Johnson as Prime Minister, and I am determined that the Liberal Democrats provide that more positive, more hopeful choice for the future of our country.