Speaking in the House of Commons, Philip Dunne pays tribute to His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
Philip Dunne (Ludlow) (Con) [V]
I, too, am grateful for the opportunity to join others who have spoken in paying my condolences to Her Majesty and the royal family on the death of His Royal Highness the Prince Philip. The Duke of Edinburgh arrived on these shores as a young boy lacking immediate family, having been educated initially in France in an American school before going on to Gordonstoun. Those experiences clearly shaped his determination to help other young people to develop the confidence to shape their own futures, as he had his own as a young man, through the award scheme he founded. Millions have benefited from it, as others have spoken about already today.
I would like to briefly add some reflections as a commissioner of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. The Duke’s wartime experience and distinguished military service gave him and others of his generation such a powerful sense of duty and of the importance of remembrance for those who served their country and paid the ultimate sacrifice. He attended many memorial and cemetery dedications and unveilings through a lifetime of service. Perhaps the most appropriate was one of the earliest, when he unveiled the second world war extension to the Chatham naval memorial in October 1952. He pointed out that like all others who had served in the Royal Navy during the war, he had lost many friends who were commemorated there.
He visited thousands of Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries on many of his 143 overseas and domestic visits. There were also the many commemorative events held during his decades of service in leading the nation as Her Majesty’s consort and in his own role, as we have just heard, across so many units of our armed services.
Wherever he went, he would show genuine interest in the smallest detail. For example, he would give tips to gardeners—often, I suspect, unsolicited—about their work and the plants they tended. He had that skill of making each person he was talking to feel as though they were the focus of his attention, often through his sharp and engaging wit and powerful observations. He helped people laugh, which broke the ice.
We have been reminded already of Prince Philip’s pioneering role in drawing attention to protecting the environment around the world. He was one of the first to speak of how humans are pushing the planet to the edge. He once said:
“We can’t make the Earth any bigger and we can’t squeeze any more out of its natural resources without changing its whole character and damaging its systems.”
He was always interested in conservation and wildlife, but his visit to the south Pacific and south Atlantic in the mid-1950s sparked his interest in the threats to nature. The hon. Member for Brighton, Pavilion (Caroline Lucas) and my hon. Friend the Member for Southend West (Sir David Amess) mentioned Prince Philip’s role helping Sir Peter Scott to establish the World Wildlife Fund. That enthusiasm never waned. He visited hundreds of WWF projects across five continents over five decades. He also used his position to promote conservation issues, inspiring people, from members of the public to world leaders, to protect nature and wildlife. That passion has clearly been passed on to his children and grandchildren.
Briefly, if I may, I will say something on behalf of my constituents who have expressed their sympathies in the last few days. Many of them saw the Duke in 2012 when, as part of the diamond jubilee tour, he accompanied Her Majesty on her tour to Shropshire. They attended a pageant at RAF Cosford, where thousands of people took part and watched the display with them. He also visited my constituency in south Shropshire in 2003 before I became the Member of Parliament. He and Her Majesty attended the Wenlock games, now widely acknowledged as the inspiration for the Olympic games, and chose rather provocatively to have lunch in Craven Arms in preference to Ludlow—the more obvious food capital of Shropshire—where they concluded their visit.
We celebrate the life of Philip and all that he has done for this country, especially because this most British of the British was actually Greek and Danish, as well as British. He certainly was connected to Britain, but Britain was also his choice. The wind did not blow him to these shores; he set a course. His were marriages of love: to England and to Elizabeth, his Queen. He served well, and will be both missed and well-remembered.