HEAR ALL SIDES needs the other side of the election. The Tories were fighting among themselves because there are several possible Brexits. What the PM did was to throw Northern Ireland under a bus.

I fear the North-East may be next, when a (Telegraph-reading) friend wrote “it seems that many in the North-East have repeated their unwise act of the referendum by voting for Boris and against their own employers”.

The region has a greater dependence on factory exports and, facing the EU ports, in turn on the EU than any other region.

All assessments show it suffering worse than any other region from any Brexit. With a “no-deal” Brexit, now made more probable by Mr Johnson in December next, a Government assessment suggests that economic growth over 15 years could be reduced by 16 per cent in the North-East.

The present level of employment in the region has been built up over several decades by EU trade, national governments and Labour local authorities, while it is London after 2010 which disproportionately cut money for local government and other services more than elsewhere by deliberately disregarding deprivation.

True, Mrs Thatcher brought Nissan here (to benefit from the EU), and the government will say that they’re enhancing plans for the Redcar SSI site to be a freeport, with its forecast of 20,000 jobs. Lets hope they arrive.

But experience shows that the big area of Seal Sands across the river took over 50 years of attracting process and storage industry to achieve only 9,000 jobs today.

To check these are views of the region’s main breadwinners, we all need simply to turn these pages to Echo Business (every Wednesday).

You need to ask the following of your new MPs (House of Commons, SW1A 0AA) as they start work.

Why are they supporting the risk of “no deal” next December, when, amid all the national concerns about it, notably in the Stock Exchange, the North-East would suffer more than anywhere if it happened?

Are you sure that government are looking beyond the “Red Wall” from North Wales to the Humber, to give us any investment?

When will the severe cuts to North-East local authorities be restored, and social care saved?

What measures are actually proposed to improve training in the area, through support for the further education colleges, the UTC and other providers?

Why was Bishop Auckland (for all its needs) the only place chosen in the whole of County Durham to benefit from the government’s November £3.6bn towns fund?

Are you prepared to co-operate with MPs and councillors from across the whole North-East, of any party?

When will the first jobs arrive at the proposed Teesport Freeport?

You might also send these questions to Rishi Sunak, MP for Richmond, an important economic minister. Why does he, as a northern MP, take part in such a government?

It may appear that the new MPs will naturally take time to match the experience and dedication of the outgoing MPs: Anna Turley, Paul Williams, Phil Wilson, Jenny Chapman, Helen Goodman, Laura Pidcock and Roberta Blackman-Woods, whom we should thank for good service.

Alan Townsend, Willington