Shropshire MP Philip Dunne at the business end of defence

And, as Minister For Defence Procurement, the Ludlow MP will manage a budget of around £20 billion pounds per year.

Around £37.5 billion of the five-year total will go on equipment, like fast jets and submarines. A similar amount will be spent on ancillary equipment, like IT. The remaining £25 billion will be spent on facilities and other provisions.

Though the sums are mind-boggling, Mr Dunne takes them in his stride.

"As I told the Prime Minister when we first appointed me to this role, my most senior position in the military beforehand was as a university air cadet.

"I was a member of the university air squadron.

"Mr Cameron told me that that was better than him because he'd only been in the cadet force at school and now he's Commander in Chief of the Military.

"I had very limited prior experience of defence, per se. However, the role that I fulfil regards contractors who supply equipment. I have had a 20-year career in business, advising companies big and small, and I am comfortable in the environment of negotiating contracts with major suppliers of international quality."

Mr Dunne entered the Ministry of Defence during the Coalition Government and made a strong impression. Initially appointed as the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Defence Equipment, Support and Technology, he was promoted to Minister of State for Defence Procurement following May's election.

"One of the big pluses for me since the election is that my job title has been shrunk in size significantly," he adds, laughing at his own joke.

His new role brings with it a position on the national Defence Board, which oversees Britain's safety and security. It is an important role in our dark times of international threats and terrorism.

"We are undertaking a strategic defence and security review, which is reassessing the threats that we face and what force, composition and structures we need to put in place to meet those threats.

"Clearly, compared to the assessment that we did in 2010, the world has become a darker place. We have a resurgent Russia, we have non-state actors like Isil seeking to undermine the rule of law in many countries and committing terrorist acts. It is a darker place. We have to recognise that we have to meet those challenges and that doesn't come cheap.

"In terms of the defence budget, the Chancellor confirmed that we will meet the two per cent GDP Nato commitment. We are one of only five countries to achieve that this year. After the United States, which has the largest spend, we are the second largest. We are the largest in Europe. We have a very significant commitment to defence and security to reflect our standing in the world and to reflect the threats we face.

"We have a responsibility, alongside other departments, for different aspects of security. In counter terrorism, there are other departments involved. The threats to our national security have become more severe."

In addition to responsibility for a £100 billion budget during the present Government, Mr Dunne also has responsibility for 12,000 staff.

"Within the procurement sphere we have an organisation called Defence Equipment and Support, which has about 12,000 people working for it. Their job is to procure the kit.

"Today we are entering about 1,000 new contracts a year. There are also about 20,000 extant contracts managed by those people. It's a major, major task. I am told that it is the largest procurement activity in government of any department.

"But one of the great things about the Ministry of Defence is that it is an attractive place to work, at least people tell me it is. It certainly is from my point of view, I think it's a great place to work.

"One of the reasons for that is that we have great people here. It's attractive for both civil service and military folk. We tend to attract high quality civil servants.

"If you look at the machinery of Government, people would probably aspire to work in the Treasury or the Foreign Office. The Ministry of Defence probably ranks right up there with those two as one of the most exciting places to work."

Mr Dunne's role means he has strong links with his counterparts in some of the biggest and most powerful nations on earth. He regularly meets the Deputy Defence Secretary for the United States Robert Work, as well as working collaboratively with senior Government officials in France, Spain, Italy, Germany and other members of NATO. They work together to secure the best submarines, jet fighters and other equipment.

He helps British businesses by seeking export contracts to the Gulf and Asia, regularly travelling overseas to secure orders that protect British jobs.

He adds: "I have responsibility for defence exports as well as procurement. Part of my role is working with contractors and allies who are procuring equipment on a common basis.

"We have a number of relationships with countries where we are in a programme to procure equipment. A good example will be the Eurofighter Typhoon, which is one of the two main combat jet platforms that we operate. A four-nation consortium is building that. On Tuesday I was in Barcelona with my counterparts from Germany, Italy and Spain.

"I particularly have responsibility for the Gulf and Asia, where we look to assist British contractors exporting overseas."

The hours are long, but Mr Dunne doesn't mind. "When I went to Barcelona, I left my flat at 4.15am and got back at about 10pm at night. That was an unusually long day. I'm not very good at getting up in the morning. We normally start at 9am and carry on until we need to. When Parliament is sitting, I have to be here to vote until 10pm on Mondays. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are 7.30pm, but very often there are dinners or events to attend."

Despite the demands on his time, he keeps most Fridays and Saturdays free for business in his constituency. He returns home to Ludlow each Friday, relishing the change in pace. His international, jet-set diary is as nothing compared to his love for the bucolic and verdant countryside of south Shropshire.

"I try to spend Friday to Sunday in the constituency. I fit in constituency work on Fridays and Saturdays and try to keep Sundays for the family.

"I've been the Ludlow MP for 10 years and Ludlow has been my home town since I was nine-months-old. I am honoured and privileged to represent such a beautiful constituency. I leave on Monday morning and it's quite a wrench.

"The thing I am most proud of is helping people to solve problems that are affecting their lives. About a year after I was elected, we had an unusual day in which three families contacted me or my office.

"They were all losing their homes, for different reasons. We managed to get all three families rehoused within a week.

"It was a very unusual thing to happen but to manage to get them all housed was very satisfying.

"One of my greatest challenges is to not to disappoint people by not being able to devote enough time to help people with their problems. I genuinely do my best."

Mr Dunne is already one of the longest serving defence procurement ministers since the war and seems set for a continued and successful career in Government.

However, home is where the heart is and one of his proudest moments came at the last General Election, when he increased his majority to just under 19,000.