I follow today the distinguished speeches of my honourable friends, with some trepidation.
It is an immense privilege to make my maiden speech in this great House where so many extraordinary men and women have gone before.
The sheer weight of tradition and history are overwhelming – and a reminder to us all of Parliament’s ancient permanence … which is not to be tampered with lightly.
What a great honour to represent the people of South Dorset. The county is my home and has been my family’s home for generations and I am proud to be elected to speak for it.
I follow in an almost unbroken line of Conservative South Dorset MP’s - with occasional, notable exceptions.
The most recent was, of course, my predecessor, Lord Knight of Weymouth ... a title that will no doubt throw many! May I congratulate him upon his ennoblement and also upon serving the people of South Dorset diligently for nine years.
Ironically, perhaps, fate threw us together before my political aspirations took hold.
As a local BBC television reporter, I was frequently sent to interview my former opponent for some years. Little did we know then what lay ahead.
Suffice to say, his elevation to the peerage was splendid news for us all…..and a relief for me.
My foray into politics ends a slight drought of Draxes here in the Commons.
In an earlier deluge, six ancestors graced this place between 1679 and 1880, all representing the long lost seat of Wareham.
One - John Sawbridge Erle-Drax MP - spoke only once during the entire 32 years of his Parliamentary career … and that was to ask the Speaker of the House to open the window!
Unsurprisingly, he was known as the ‘Silent MP’… after his death he arranged for the Times to be delivered daily to his mausoleum through a special built-in letterbox. …mine is yet to be constructed.
In view of his trappist tendencies, for his descendant to be making his maiden speech a mere eight weeks into the parliamentary session must seem like indecent haste…
South Dorset is a place of monumental beauty. The people are proud and fiercely independent.
Years of history have forged this constituency, not least the Second World War, which saw its beaches, bases and ranges nurture tens of thousands of young men as they prepared to fight for our freedom during those dark days more than 60 years ago.
Today, the resorts of Weymouth and Swanage are home to a wide range of activities, from light industry to retail, tourism and fishing.
Farmers… the guardians of our countryside…and sadly neglected for so many years… have cared for the lush interior for centuries. And nor should we forget the quarries of Portland, which still offer up the stone for which the island is so famous.
The island is also renowned by sailors for its huge tides, which offer great hope for future energy provision.
Another island in my constituency is worthy of note, not least because of its red squirrels … I am talking of course about Brownsea Island, set in the middle of Poole harbour, the second largest natural harbour in the world.
The marshy, southern reaches of these waters provide a spectacular haven for sailors, birds and wildlife – including the human variety, who occupy one of Europe’s largest nudist beaches at nearby Studland. I haven’t had a surgery there yet!
The entire constituency is dominated by our Jurassic Coast, now a World Heritage Site.
Dinosaurs once roamed the constituency … and judging from comments made by my opponents during the election campaign, you might think one was still out there!
Maybe that is the case … but a strong Conservative heart beats underneath these scales – tempered for the moment with a dash of liberalism – and I shall represent my constituents according to my conscience … without fear or favour.
On this note…and despite being at the bottom of the food chain…I sense a shift in mood in this House. The new intake has brought with it a fresh perspective. While understanding the need for party cohesion, I believe MP’s should have their own minds – and above all - be mindful of those who put us here.
This was very much my guide during my four years as a candidate where I met a vast range of people who enriched my knowledge of the constituency.
And it was this experience which revealed to me that appearances can be deceptive. What do I mean?
South Dorset may be lavishly endowed with natural gifts but it has traditionally suffered from a lack of investment in its infrastructure. We have lost shops, pubs, bus services and a shocking 50% of our post offices over the last ten years.
Out of season, the hotels and guest houses fall silent. In Weymouth alone, we have six of the most deprived wards on the National Index of Deprivation.
The fishing industry, quarrying, agriculture and the ports have all taken a knock under the recession - and while unemployment remains below the national average, wages are resolutely low.
We have two prisons in South Dorset … HMP The Verne and the Young Offenders Institution.
I have visited both on several occasions and worked closely with the Governors and the Prison Officers’ Association.
The POA’s plight has been ignored for too long. As in so many other areas, the pendulum has swung too far in one direction.
Today, officers feel powerless to do their job effectively as the prisoners appear to have more rights than they do.
With 50 per cent remission as the norm, it is very difficult to apply meaningful sanctions to those prisoners who do not toe the line.
It is important to remember, in my humble opinion, that the prison service is just that … a service, and without proper support, officers will continue to feel - as they repeatedly describe themselves - like a ‘forgotten army’.
I warmly welcome the Government’s intentions on minimum sentencing and would urge them to look at this as soon as possible.
I also applaud this Government’s interest in - and support for - our Armed Services.
In South Dorset we have two major Army camps … Bovington and Lulworth … the courage and sacrifice of the families who live there cannot be overstated.
Take for example just one of our county regiments, The Rifles. The regiment has now lost 53 riflemen in Afghanistan and more than 200 have been very seriously injured.
This is the human cost of war.
As a former soldier, I hold our servicemen and women in high regard … I am greatly reassured by the Coalition government’s actions to ensure that the Military Covenant is properly respected.
As to the future, it holds great promise, with the Olympic spotlight well and truly focused on the best sailing waters in the UK.
And already, top athletes are training for competitive events both this year and next in preparation for the 2012 Games.
And all this hosted by the Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy … the first Olympic venue to be ready and officially opened by the Queen herself.
None of this would be possible without the co-operation of Portland Port, the former naval dockyard, now in private hands.
Despite grim predictions at the time, the port now employs more civilians than it did in its heyday as a naval base - there are some exciting projects in the pipeline, which promise hundreds more jobs.
Finally, I have entered public life because I could no longer sit on my hands and watch while our beloved country lost her pride.
However, unlike my ancestor - who didn’t say a word for 32 years - I have every intention of standing up for my constituents who put me here.
ends