HERE’S a flavour of my (rather defence-dominated) last week.

27/2. Up to London to escape from a hectic constituency weekend. Meeting with MoD to discuss my Military Assistant, Lieutenant-Colonel Longbottom who has ruptured his spleen on an Armed Forces Parliamentary trip to the Falklands. Survived Afghanistan but now injured by a flying luggage trolley in a helicopter downdraft. How ironic.

I chair a Westminster Hall debate on the NHS as one of Speaker’s Panel of Chairmen. Dinner at my antiquated but much-loved club, Pratt's.

28/2. Commons Defence Committee for two hours grilling Sir John Parker over the RN shipbuilding programme. We have 19 operational warships, which is far too few. As chairman of the Parliamentary group for Mongolia I meet our ambassador, then have lunch with Raytheon to discuss RN defence matters.

I chat to the head of the Parliamentary archives about displaying RAF Act to celebrate its 100th anniversary in a splendidly obscure cobweb-ridden eyrie high in Victoria Tower, then an hour discussing EU Army ambitions, and how to thwart them. I appear on BBC West to welcome Dyson’s expansion in Hullavington, then have drinks with the Parliamentary Defence group, which I chair, with an Air Marshall, then dinner with Baroness Scott and other local MPs to hear about plans for the RA Museum on Salisbury Plain.

1/3. Radio Wilts at 8am to discuss Dyson, then I chair a Statutory Instrument Committee on fracking, have a meeting with splendid King Abdullah of Jordan to discuss Syria. Then it is a rather lacklustre PMQs, I chair a meeting to quiz Scandinavian ambassadors about Defence in the Arctic, chat to the RN about how to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the WRENS, then dinner with a couple of constituents.

2/3. I see Sir Nicholas Soames about a visit by the Household Cavalry, then a morning at the desk wading through paper. Back to Wiltshire for a relatively peaceful weekend including dentist in Corsham – very relaxing not having to do or decide anything but leave it all to the expert. A trip to Bristol to appear on Sunday’s Politics Show, then I speak to the local Tories' AGM in Castle Combe; Beaufort Point to Point races at Didmarton and, while Philippa is away, a great deal of looking after animals and writing and reading in my Constituency office.

6/3. Lunch with Thames Water (I am proud that Ashton Keynes is the first visible, and Cricklade the first navigable, part of Thames). I chair a meeting with Norwegian MoD and Ministers to discuss NATO in the Arctic, thence dinner with the speakers.

7/3. Breakfast with BBC West, then I chair the committee stage of a Private Members' Bill about registering farriers. Two hours on the Defence Committee to discuss Northern Ireland, and dinner with an Admiral to hear about current RN capabilities – far less than they ought to be.

8/3. The Budget Statement is a lot less exciting than it used to be, largely owing to it being widely trailed in last Sunday’s papers. Take heads of Malmesbury schools in to see Minister Nick Gibb to lobby over better funding, have a cup of tea with Liam Fox over trade matters, chair a meeting about Turkey and have dinner in the Cabinet War Rooms. Must do more in the Chamber – these myriad meetings tend to get in the way. A busy, and I hope influential, week.