It's brain-frazzling! New Black Country MPs starting to find their feet

They have taken their places in the Commons among 140 new parliamentarians, having spent the weeks since the election finding their feet in their new role.

It has been a baptism of fire, with parliament recalled shortly after six weeks of non-stop campaigning, giving the newbies little time to get used to their surroundings.

Most of them were in Westminster for a meeting on the Sunday after the election.

This was followed by an induction process the week before Christmas described by the MPs as “brain-frazzling”. It saw them assigned a member of staff, given a laptop, a backpack and a big rulebook before being formally unleashed on the parliamentary estate.

'Whirlwind'

The first time West Bromwich West MP Shaun Bailey entered the House of Commons was on his first day of work as an MP.

The 27-year-old, from Telford, describes his initial spell in the job as “manic”, having been thrust into the political maelstrom as soon as his victory celebrations had died down.

“The view was very much... ‘you’ve won, well done, now get on with it!’,” he says. “It’s been an absolute whirlwind and the first couple of weeks are quite surreal. But you soon become absorbed in your work.”

Mr Bailey has recently moved into his London office in Portcullis House, having initially worked “out of a rucksack” in a variety of different common rooms in Westminster.

He is preparing to move into a new constituency office off Wednesbury High Street, a central location he hopes will make him as accessible to as many constituents as possible.

“I have been elected to work on behalf of the people of West Bromwich West, and I am determined to do everything I can to make sure the things they are concerned about are my main focus,” he says.

He says residents’ concerns over crime have prompted him to seek a meeting with the Policing Minister in a bid to ensure his corner of Sandwell gets its fair share of new police officers.

"He is yet to make his maiden speech, and says getting used to the conventions of Parliament is no easy task. “Bowing when you leave the chamber... not crossing the floor when someone else is speaking... it’s all completely new and you learn as you go on,” he said. “It is like nothing I have ever experienced but fortunately I’ve got time to learn.”

The raft of new rules and regulations has posed a few problems for former Walsall Mayor Marco Longhi, who won Dudley North for the Tories for the first time in history.

While attempting to raise a point during a topical questions session he was given short shrift by his fellow MPs over a minor procedural error. “The Chamber just erupted,” Mr Longhi said.

“I’d only been an MP for five minutes and it is a very steep learning curve. Once you get your head around all the admin and the procedures, you start to get more confident. I’m working alongside people I have only ever seen on television before, which makes it an incredibly fascinating experience.”

Learning fast

Suzanne Webb, who retained Stourbridge for the Tories after Margot James stood down, said she had developed a reputation for being rather keen in the first few weeks of the new parliament, having turned up to one vote almost an hour too soon.

“You get a text through giving you an hour to get to the Chamber,” she says. “The first time I was so worried about missing it I got there in four minutes and had a long wait,” she said. “The others have all teased me a bit but it is all good natured.”

She said a good team spirit had developed among the new Black Country group, many of whom sit together during PMQs, while the fact that the Tories now had such a large majority meant the atmosphere on their side of the House has been “hugely positive”.

“Passing the Brexit legislation was absolutely thrilling and allowed us to hit the ground running,” she said, having spent much of the last year looking on in despair as Labour repeatedly blocked it.

A councillor in Birmingham since 2018, she says she is hoping to do her maiden speech in the coming weeks, when she plans to hail Stourbridge’s “great and bright” future.

Her main concern so far has involved her beloved 11-year-old cocker spaniel Ollie, who has struggled to get used to being without Mrs Webb when she is in Westminster.

“He was my campaign dog and now he’s my MP dog,” she said. “It’s been a huge upheaval for him as we are used to spending so much time together.”

Emails, emails, emails

Nicola Richards, who at 25 is one of the youngest of the new intake, said she had an inkling about what to expect in her new job having worked for other Black Country MPs in the past.

The Dudley councillor said: “It is a lot to take in at first. I have had so much casework come through and I really don’t want to let anyone down, but the fact is you are trying to juggle a lot of things at once.”

Ms Richards has now settled in to her Westminster office in Parliament Street, which is being manned by one staff member, with another three staff based at her constituency office.

She’s also joined a number of All-Party Parliamentary Groups, looking at policy areas which impact on the Sikh community, park runs and beer.

Having landed the previously Labour stronghold of West Bromwich East, Ms Richards says she is determined to be a strong representative for her constituents.

Before he won Wolverhampton South West, Stuart Anderson would get between 20 and 50 emails each day. Now he receives up to 500, split evenly between casework and invites to various functions.

He says immigration is a key issue for his constituents, many of whom contact him regarding VISA issues for family members, while he has also had plenty of emails about litter, with residents concerned about the state of the streets in the city.

“It is a huge step up from being a candidate to becoming an MP – and it all happens so quickly,” he says.

“In the space of a few days I had around 120 pieces of casework come in, and you get so many invites that it would be impossible to attend even a quarter of them.

“At first you are just not prepared, but it gets easier to deal with once the staff are in place.”

Last week he moved into his new Parliament Street office having spent his early days in parliament working in various corridors.

His fellow city MP Jane Stevenson was only selected to represent Wolverhampton North East 12 weeks ago. “It has all happened so quickly but I’m getting a little bit more settled each day,” the 48-year-old said.

“It is really pleasing to be part of a group of MPs who are all very Black Country-centred. We are all going to be pushing for local improvements.”

The new cohort has received guidance from Walsall North MP Eddie Hughes, who says he has vivid memories of the being new to the job from when he was first elected in 2017.

He said: “It only feels like it has been a few months since I started to confidently find my way around, so the idea of helping others seems slightly amusing.”