Bob Stewart MP answers ConHome's Twenty Questions for the Class of 2010

Now that most of the new intake of Conservatives MPs have settled into life at Westminster and made their maiden speeches, ConHome has invited them all to answer twenty questions to help us get to know them a little better.

The first MP to be featured is Bob Stewart, who was elected MP for Beckenham with a majority of 17,784.

1. What is your earliest political memory? Meeting the British High Commissioner to Aden in 1955.

2. Complete the sentence: “I’m a Conservative because… It is the party which I believes most cares for every single person in this country - rich or poor - and guards the traditions and character of Britain."

3. Who is your political hero and why? Winston Churchill because of his courage.

4. When did you decide you wanted to become an MP? May 2009.

5. What is your reading material of choice? I always look at ConHome, BBC News, and Iain Dale on the internet.

6. Who is your favourite political interviewer/presenter on TV or radio? Dan Damon of BBC World Service.

7. If you could run any government department, which would it be and why? Defence, because I have been a soldier for most of my adult life.

8. Which non-Conservative politician do you most admire? Hilary Benn.

9. Who would you least want to get stuck with in a House of Commons lift? I don't answer that sort of question.

10. If you were in the US, would you be a Republican or a Democrat? Republican.

11. What do you enjoy doing to unwind and relax? Being free to do anything I like.

12. What is your favourite book? What is History? by E.H. Carr.

13. What is your favourite film? The Dam Busters, which I first saw in 1954.

14. What is your favourite music? Who widna fecht for Charlie.

15. What would be your ideal meal and where would you eat it? Fried calamari and a cold beer on the terrace of The Rock Hotel, Gibraltar.

16. What is your favourite holiday destination? Cyprus - because I spent some of my childhood there

17. What do you most want to achieve during your first term in Parliament? Understanding how the place works and being an effective backbencher.

18. Tell us one interesting, unusual or surprising fact about yourself. I guarded Rudolf Hess in Spandau Prison, Berlin.

19. Tell us one interesting, unusual or surprising fact about your constituency. William Wilberforce announced, in Mr Pitt's garden, that he intended to emancipate slaves by bringing a bill to that effect before Parliament.

20. Share with us your most amusing story or favourite anecdote from the campaign trail. Being invited in for champagne by some exceptionally kind people in Keston - I overstayed my welcome!