IMAGINE a room full of politicians singing about election defeat to the tune of Waltzing Matilda.

IMAGINE a room full of politicians singing about election defeat to the tune of Waltzing Matilda.

That is how the Liberal Democrats wound up their party conference this year, merrily singing about losing their deposits at the traditional end of the week bash.

One person who enjoyed the night out was Dee Tomlin, the Lib Dem's candidate for the Wycombe constituency. The talented bassoonist and chairman of Wokingham District Council is raring for the election battle to get under way.

She has already got her own internet site and tells me the Conservatives in Wycombe have logged on and asked to join her mailing list.

But even if the opposition are apparently taking her seriously, many people would say the seat is a two horse race between the Conservatives and Labour.

Mrs Tomlin, 38, dismissed the suggestion and said the party was quite capable of securing enough votes to turn Wycombe orange.

She pointed to her long track record in local government, more than eight years, as 'part of a background the other two candidates do not have.'

The married mother of two children is clearly relishing her latest role as chairman of a unitary authority, but does she have time to get to grip with the issues that are affecting people here?

Mrs Tomlin said she had attended a number of county, district and town council meetings in the area and visits the constituency from her Twyford home on a regular basis.

She said she would review her living arrangements if she took the seat but feels the present incumbent of the job Sir Ray Whitney has not suffered from having a home outside Wycombe.

Mrs Tomlin said health, transport and education, were the issues voters seemed most concerned with.

Although her party is against selection in education, Mrs Tomlin is wary of 'mucking about' with the system in Bucks unless vast amounts of money can be put into schools.

She is, however, very concerned to make sure no child is thrown onto the scrap-heap for failing their 11-plus.

Mrs Tomlin is also angry at the possible closure of one of the breast cancer screening units in the county. With a high death rate from the disease, she said it was important women had every chance to detect problems early. She is against current changes to local government structure and believes cabinet-councils will end up neutering councillors' views.