HUNDREDS of mourners turned out for the funeral of former Basingstoke and North West Hampshire MP Sir David Mitchell.

Sir David, who was Basingstoke MP between 1964 and 1983, before becoming North West Hampshire MP, died at his home in Odiham on Saturday, August 30. He was 86.

Last Thursday, Sir David’s funeral took place at All Saints’ Church in Odiham, and all three local MPs in The Gazette area – Basingstoke MP Maria Miller, North West Hampshire MP Sir George Young and North East Hampshire MP James Arbuthnot – were among those who came to pay their final respects.

Sir David’s coffin was carried into the church, in The Bury, behind a lone bagpiper. His favourite flower, heather, was laid on top of the coffin.

Sir David’s eldest son Andrew Mitchell, the MP for Sutton Coldfield and former Chief Whip, paid tribute to his father in a eulogy that, at times, drew much laughter.

Mr Mitchell – who consented to The Gazette covering the funeral service – recalled his father’s two passions in life, which saw him play a major part in the running of El Vino, a London-based wine merchants, while serving as an MP.

The father-of-three’s political life saw him take up a number of roles during the Thatcher governments, including that of transport minister at the time of the construction of the Channel Tunnel.

Paying tribute to his father, Mr Mitchell said: “He had a deep sense that politics was about service – service to his children, service to his constituents and service to his party.”

He added that Sir David believed people should only enter politics if they had achieved something in another field, and that it would be “greatly diminished” if dominated by a “political class”.

Mr Mitchell said his father’s ashes would be scattered, according to his wishes, in Yorkshire, “amongst the silence of the moors and the beauty of the heather he loved so much”.

The funeral service, led by Odiham vicar, The Reverend Alison Brown, included hymns such as Dear Lord and Father of mankind and Guide me, O thou great redeemer.