AT the time of writing, a week has passed since I was appointed a minister and my feet have barely touched the ground!

My brief takes in arts, heritage and tourism and every minute of my days have been taken up with meeting after meeting, getting to know some of the key people I will be working with as I get to grips with the challenges and the opportunities within the sector.

A small sampling of my activities has included meeting the directors of the Science Museum and The Tate, visiting the Young Vic, Tate Modern and attending the BP National Portrait Awards.

As well as London engagements, I have been to Hull, the current City of Culture.

My new schedule has allowed time to return to the constituency for a full advice surgery.

I have no doubt that Salisbury’s strong footprint and sterling reputation in the arts, heritage and tourism world played a considerable part in my appointment to this role and I am proud that two of my first visits in a ministerial capacity have been local ones – to Old Sarum and Salisbury Library and the Young Gallery.

Salisbury’s civic day on Saturday was a great success and a worthy showcase for the lively civic spirit that promotes admirable levels of engagement in how we want our city to look in the future.

Organisations like the Greenspace Partnership have an important role to play in shaping the ongoing conversation about how we strike the right balance between protecting our precious natural landscape while also meeting the housing and employment needs of our young people.

Over the weekend, I also spent some time at Boscombe Down Aviation Collection marking the 35th anniversary of the end of the Falklands War. The collection is now a superb example of how to let visitors – particularly children – really engage with and experience the exhibits and is deservedly going from strength to strength.

I am back in Salisbury again on Friday and looking forward to attending Farley Music Festival.