Address to Her Majesty: Platinum Jubilee

Richard Drax Excerpts

Thursday 26th May 2022 Commons Chamber

[Richard Drax (South Dorset) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney (Gerald Jones) and all the gracious speeches from right across the House, and what an honour and a privilege it is for me personally to speak on behalf of my constituents in South Dorset, a very loyal county, to mark the Queen’s remarkable 70-year reign.

In fact, the monarch’s longevity is such that “platinum jubilee” is not defined in the “Compact Oxford English Dictionary”, whereas “golden jubilee” is. The publication refers to the latter as the 50th anniversary of “a significant event”, which it certainly was. Can I make a suggestion for the former? Perhaps it could be defined as the 70th anniversary of “our great national treasure who epitomises grace, dignity and duty”.

I would like to remind the House of the quote that several Members have used—they may have been looking at my speech and cheating—but it is a very appropriate quote that Princess Elizabeth made to the Commonwealth on her 21st birthday. I want to repeat it because it is so powerful and simple:

“I declare before you all that my whole life whether it be long or short shall be devoted to your service”.

Our Queen has kept her word, and we are all the richer for it.

I have had the honour and pleasure to serve the Queen for nine years in the armed forces and to meet her in person twice. It is appropriate therefore to mention next Thursday’s trooping the colour. I recall with great clarity and pride being on parade for three of them many years ago. There is a moment during the march past in slow time when you salute Her Majesty with your sword; the movement is graceful and flowing, and with your head firmly to the right, you look directly at the Queen. It is quite a moment. Her expression is impassive, but you know—we all knew—that every movement is being scrutinised and any slip-up noted. Her attention to detail is legendary and, for those who get it wrong, really quite scary.

The loyalty the Queen commands from the military is one of the many reasons our armed forces are the best in the world. Many friends who fought in the Falklands war told me that their best friend was the soldier beside them, but that loyalty to Queen and country drove them to commit acts of bravery that no one under normal circumstances would consider; it is called service and sacrifice, which in my humble opinion epitomises the Queen.

As I have said, I have met the Queen twice. On the first occasion, our battalion, based not far from here at Wellington barracks, was graced by not one Queen, but two: the Queen and Queen Mother. They were attending the presentation of new colours, and the photograph of that hangs proudly on my wall. The second occasion was when Her Majesty opened the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy prior to the sailing games in my constituency. The many attendees were formed into groups of about eight, and we watched and waited as the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh worked the room, stopping to talk to every single one of us. I wondered then just how many times the couple had done this, and I marvelled at their nobility, patience—we have heard that word many times today—and endurance. The room was abuzz, and the reception the royal couple received was close to adoration. However, this was not some infatuation: it was a mixture of respect and affection generated by years of flawless service.

Finally, like, I am sure, many in the House, I watched “The Crown”. I paid little or no attention to the tittle-tattle in the script, but I was blown away by the historical sweep of the Queen’s life and the role she has played in our island’s history for 96 years. I was so moved that I wrote to her simply to say thank you for a life of sacrifice and duty, and a glorious reign that history will record for future generations to come. God bless the Queen.