On Wednesday 3rd June Kevin requested a chance to make his maiden speech in the section of the debate on the Queen's Speech that focussed on Devolution and Growth Around Britain. Despite sitting in the chamber for several hours the very large number of members wishing to speak meant Kevin was not called, but you can read here what he would have said:
"Thank you Mr Speaker.
It is an honour to be able to give my Maiden Speech in this house during a debate that focuses on a matter that is key for me, securing growth across Britain, in particular in my home county of Devon
In starting I am pleased that my first speech in this chamber is likely to be a lot clearer than my first speech after being declared the winner of my constituency. After years of hard campaigning the time came for my result to be declared, yet having been elected to give tens of thousands of residents in Torquay and Paignton a voice, the first person I needed to give one to was myself. A rather nasty cold meant my voice nearly deserted me that day, but thankfully is back in full force today.
The declaration of a result for Torbay has a unique place in the story of our political life as it is the only constituency declaration featured in the original House of Cards series, and it was a Conservative win in that one as well. Yet whether this parliament will be anything like the one dominated by Francis Urquhart is something I will leave other members to comment on as I could not possibly do so myself.
I know I have a hard act to follow in the form of my predecessor Adrian Sanders who represented South Devon’s beautiful bay for 18 years in this house. During the recent campaign I enjoyed our debates and respect not only him as a person, but the work he did in this house on diabetes and animal welfare, along with the work he did to improve our infrastructure including helping to secure the long awaited Kingskerswell Bypass.
I wish him and his wife Alison, who for a number of years worked as his office manager, the very best for their future.
Yesterday it was a pleasure to meet another of my predecessors Rupert Allason, wearing one of his trademark pieces of knitwear, who was keen to offer a few helpful words of advice, along with a chance to share some memories of his time in the house.
Torbay, or the English Riviera as it is best known, is famous as one of the premier holiday destinations in Europe. So as you will imagine Mr Speaker when the English Rivieria Tourism Company and the Torbay Tourism Association heard I that in a maiden speech it is customary to talk about the best things about your constituency they were only too happy to send some me suggestions, just in case any members had not finalised their summer holiday plans.
After all how many other members can say their constituency contains miles of Sandy Beaches, the birthplace of Agatha Christie, steam trains, giraffes, tigers, elephants, bears, although sadly none of the Pandas we keep hearing about from some of our Scottish colleagues.
The oldest identified home in Europe, Kent’s Cavern, is in Torquay. A prehistoric jawbone fragment discovered in the cavern in 1927 is the earliest modern human fossil yet discovered in northwestern Europe, although despite being about 40,000 years old Caveog, as we know him now, is very much part of the modern stoneage family with his very own twitter account.
Kent’s Cavern lies at the heart of the bay’s unique geology, which was recognised in 2007 as a global geopark. Torbay’s Geopark is the only one set amidst a vibrant urban area and with the 7th International Conference on Global Geoparks being held in Torquay next year the bay really does rock.
Despite the image given by our most infamous hotelier Basil Fawlty, we regularly welcome visitors from across the world to our bay. Yet tourism is not the only aspect of Torbay’s economy. There are over 1,000 people working in the electronics and photonics industry alone, with companies like Gooch & Housego, Hymid Multi-Shot and Spirent producing hi-tech manufactured goods and expanding to meet the demand for them.
Growing this side of our economy is vital to providing the high tech, high skilled, well paid jobs of the future for the next generation in the bay. That is why I welcome the measures being put forward to boost growth and to devolve the powers to deliver them not only to our great cities, but hopefully to our great counties as well, with a real commitment from the Government to delivering apprenticeships that ensure we have a generation ready to take the jobs that will be created.
One of Brunel’s lesser known legacies is Brunel Manor in Torquay, the home he designed for his own retirement. Brunel’s vision left a great legacy for the bay in the form of the Great Western, a railway that in the 19th century made the seemingly impossible, possible.
In the 21st century I am pleased that similar vision is being shown by the government in finally committing to dual the A303 route and to deliver a resilient railway with the capacity we need for the future, along with the digital infrastructure so vital for today’s industry.
In November the Secretary of State for Communities came to my place, Torquay, to hear from local partners about the difference funding for a new Electronics and Photonics Innovation Centre would make in the bay. This funding has now been delivered and I am therefore delighted to see him take his new place in this chamber.
Whilst Torbay is a beautiful place to live, work, and retire, there is an ugly side in the form of new psychoactive chemicals that can so easily be created, but their effects on our community can be impossible to undo.
One of my campaigns was to change the law around these drugs and I am therefore delighted that this is one of the bills put before parliament as part of the speech and I welcomed the Home Secretary’s comments on this last week following her visit to Torquay in April. Those selling these substances know exactly what they will be used for, despite attempts to describe them as “pot purri” or “research chemicals”. Head Shop owners are no different morally to other drugs peddlers in our community and it is time there was no difference legally either.
Last year I lost someone who played a key role in supporting and encouraging me to reach my goal of being elected to this house. Whilst the adverts say that the majority now survive cancer, my Mother Linda was not one of them, succumbing to Bowel Cancer in January last year. She was the daughter of a Quarryman, who grew up in a Council House on the Ham Estate in Plymouth. Yet she saw no limits to what goals could be achieved if you dedicated yourself to it and she spent a lifetime helping children who needed a little bit of extra help at school achieve theirs.
My Mum said that in life success was not always guaranteed, things would sometimes get in your way, but the key was to always “do your best” and that is what I intend to do as a member of this house.
Thank You."