Photo: Contributed

MP Mel Arnold is ready to head back to Ottawa.

The election dust has settled and now Mel Arnold is getting back to the job he was elected to do.

The North Okanagan-Shuswap Conservative MP was strongly endorsed by the electorate Monday for his second term in office.

Arnold said this time around he has a lot more experience when he heads to Ottawa.

“This time around we have the contacts and trust already built up with the First Nations and all of the municipalities. Having that experience is a huge asset. Knowing how to get your message across, how to work across party lines when you need to, how to build consensus on your goals and how to bring all of that together.”

Arnold said the political future of the nation is going to be interesting as the Liberals retained power but this time with a minority government.

“It's going to be interesting. We've had four years of holding the Liberal government accountable. We held them back significantly and had a major influence on how Canada operated over the past four years and I think we will have an even bigger impact over the next term whatever that might be,” said Arnold.

One area Arnold said one thing he will look into is affordability, which is something that rose to the forefront during the past few years.

“People are just finding it difficult to get by and are certainly not getting ahead,” said Arnold. “The theme of our campaign was Finding ways to help you get ahead, and I think that is what we will continue on for the next term.”

Arnold also plans to keep up his fight against invasive mussels.

He has been an outspoken advocate for action against zebra and quagga mussels that have the potential to destroy an ecosystem.

He has been critical of the Liberal party over the years for doing too little to protect area waterways.