Caroline praises rival in maiden Commons speech

Caroline Nokes spoke highly of Conservative Michael Colvin, who died in a fire at his Hampshire home in February 2000 and of Lib Dem Sandra Gidley who she defeated in the genral election.

Mrs Nokes' full maiden speech:

Thank you Mr Speaker for giving me the opportunity to make my maiden speech today and in so doing contribute to this debate on building a high skilled economy.

I would like to start by congratulating my honourable friend the member for Milton Keynes South for his excellent contribution, and for removing some of the misconceptions we may have had about his seat. I would also like to congratulate the member for Liverpool Whalton, and must confess soem envy at his boast of not one but two premiership football clubs in his constituency. I have listened to many maiden speeches over the course of the last few weeks, and have been impressed with the breadth of knowledge of colleagues.

A debate on a high skilled economy is particularly pertinent in my constituency of Romsey and Southampton North. In Chilworth we have the excellent University of Southampton Science Park, where there are many high tech companies. 14% of the employees on the Park are graduates of Southampton University and the companies based there annually contribute £337 million pounds to the regional economy. I was fortunate to visit one of the businesses on the park just this week, and given that they were involved in testing high explosives I can fully appreciate their need for a highly skilled workforce.

My first comments are far removed from the high tech world of Chilworth in the 21st Century, and turn to the heart of the constituency, Romsey, a few hundred years ago.

On the edge of the town, being renovated this year, is Broadlands, the stately home where the 19th Century Prime Minister Lord Palmerston was born. Broadlands has been described as having a grandness that personifies the swaggering confidence of Palmerston. Members may be assured there will be no swaggering from me in this maiden speech.

Whilst Palmerston was born in Romsey, it was never his constituency. So I will not be paying tribute to him as a predecessor, and going back to the 19th century would be a bit of a stretch to say the least. However, he did have an interesting political journey, serving as a Tory, Whig and a Liberal. Although it is interesting to note that biographies have described him as "too strong a character to be swamped by liberalism."

I have two predecessors in the Romsey constituency to whom I would like to pay tribute today. Michael Colvin, served the constituency of Romsey and Waterside from 1983-97 and the Romsey Constituency from 97 until his tragic death in 2000. Michael was a good man who worked tirelessly for the constituency and its residents. He was a farmer and understood the rural parts of the constituency well, he was a former Grenadier Guard, and championed defence issues and the military interests in the area, such as the army air corps at Middle Wallop, and he was a former parish, district and County Cllr in Hampshire. Having also served as a Borough Councillor in the constituency I can attest to the solid apprenticeship local Government can provide.

Also committed to Romsey, where she was once the town's youngest Mayor, was my immediate predecessor, Sandra Gidley. She worked hard for the constituency and was well known for her commitment to the NHS and to women's issues. More recently Mr Speaker she was also known for having dragged you to the Speakers Chair.

The recent election saw significant boundary changes, and the new Romsey and Southampton North constituency includes additional parts of Southampton. It now contains the Ford plant in Swaythling. Southampton is well known as the home of the transit, and Ford is committed to using innovation and technology to make Europe's best selling light commercial vehicle as green as possible. They have been successful, and the econetic transit is the best in its class for CO2 emissions.

Even in an area where we are fortunate to have good schools and excellent companies like Ford, working to make sure there is still a strong manufacturing base in the UK, there is still a disconnect between what employers want from school leavers and the skills with which they are leaving school, college and university. It is critical that the two are matched, and that our education system is working with employers to make sure there is no skills gap.

But having a strong and productive workforce is about many things, and one of the key strengths of the Romsey and Southampton North constituency is the quality of life, and the quality of the natural environment. As a remedy for stress and tension there really is nothing better than some of the countryside and open spaces in the constituency. If the restorative qualities of the Hampshire countryside, and particularly the valley of the River Test, could only be bottled, there would be a far reduced need for pharmaceutical remedies.

We also have a small corner of the New Forest National Park in the south of the constituency. The Park, and its Authority, does not come without challenges of its own, but at least the dog walkers and the ponies still do prevail.

The River Test, one of the finest trout rivers in the world, runs north to south through the constituency. Appreciated by Prime Ministers and Presidents from across the globe, it has a fine tradition for fly fishing, and a wonderful tranquility and beauty which give amazing solace.

But even in the more urban parts of the constituency there are pockets of open space which enhance the quality of life enormously. Residents in Swaythling have worked hard to preserve and maintain Monks Brook for the local community. One of our local wildlife photographers delights in sending me pictures of adders and slow worms from this corner of countryside right next to the motorway. In Bassett there is the Sports Centre, Daisy Dip and the Golf Course, and I appreciate how hard the City Council has to work to maintain these areas and secure their future.

Romsey, has a real gem, with the Memorial Park, proudly flying a green flag for 2 years now and optimistic for news of a third in July, and home to the community orchard. There is a bandstand and a team of volunteers from the friends of the memorial park, who make sure the park is one of the best in the region. There is also one of the pair of Japanese Field Guns, brought to Romsey by Lord Mountbatten of Burma at the end of the 2nd World War.

But there are other parts of the constituency not as well protected as these public open spaces, and it is of inevitable concern to local residents that areas are at risk of being swallowed up by development. I welcome the news from the Government that regional spatial strategies are to be consigned to the dustbin. We cannot allow the gaps between settlements to be eroded, for local character to be diminished as neighbourhoods coalesce and individual identity is lost. The residents of Halterworth, those close to Hoe Lane in North Baddesley, and of Redbridge Lane in Nursling have a commitment from me to make sure local strategic planning really is restored to local people.

Building a high skilled economy cannot just be about urban centres of employment. There are many beautiful rural villages in the north of the constituency, where there are the inevitable problems with the lack of high speed broadband, or indeed any broadband at all, but where there is also a good strong farming tradition.

Just because agriculture is a traditional part of the economy does not mean it is not high skilled, far from it. And those skills manage and maintain our countryside and keep us fed. Whilst focussing on the high skilled we cannot let Britain's farming tradition wither.

To conclude on a lighter note Mr Speaker, Romsey is claimed to be one of the most haunted parts of Hampshire. Florence Nightingale allegedly still walks her old home at Embley Park, and both Romsey Abbey and Wherwell Priory are said to be haunted by nuns. One of the best known ghost tales is that of two roundhead soldiers who were hanged from the iron bracket outside the former Swan Inn (which is now the Conservative Club). One managed to cut himself loose and then ran to his death in an alleyway in the town. Apparently he can frequently be seen repeating his attempted escape. However, I would like to reassure members it is a long time since there has been a public hanging in the town.

Thank you Mr Speaker.