New MPs reflect on 'amazing' and 'challenging' year

MP Sarah Bool said she was "excited and in awe" on her first day in Parliament

Just over a year ago Sir Keir Starmer's Labour government swept to power, winning a huge parliamentary majority.

As well as the political map of the country changing, Northamptonshire underwent a significant shift, with six of the seven constituencies getting brand new MPs.

Among them were Sarah Bool in South Northamptonshire, who held the seat for the Conservatives, and Mike Reader, Labour MP for Northampton South, who won his seat from the Tories.

What has the past 12 months been like for them and what is life like in the role?

'The British public are really watching'

Bool has previously stood in Vauxhall in the 2019 election before succeeding Dame Andrea Leadsom in South Northamptonshire.

Looking back on the last 12 months, she says: "The very first time I actually sat in the chamber was a real pinch me moment.

"You touch the green leather and think of everything and everyone who has spoken there.

"For me, that was quite a magical moment, after years and years of being interested and wanting to get into politics, to finally be there was absolutely incredible."

Bool is the Private Parliamentary Secretary (PPS) for the shadow Home Office and shadow Attorney General, as well as being on a select committee and the vice chair of another parliamentary group.

She says being in opposition brings plenty of challenges, including time management, and there is "all the national legislation and all the constituency things that are the most important" to consider.

However, she says she gets interesting experiences as part of her job, such as when she did "a loop-the-loop in an aeroplane" as part of an armed forces parliamentary scheme.

Both MPs praised their Westminster and constituency teams for the work and support they provide

Bool got to ask her first Prime Minister's Question (PMQ) last month about the need for early detection.

Describing the experience, she says: "[It was] Nerve-wracking, it's the one moment where you know the British public are really watching and the chamber is full."

Bool says it was "quite intimidating, but what was lovely is you can get the support from your colleagues, so you hear the 'here, here's' as you're standing there".

'The other side of parliament'

Mike Reader said the first few weeks were exhausting as you haven't got staff - you get elected and 72,000 people get your e-mail address and think you're an expert

Reader joined the Labour Party in 2015 and was selected for the party's future candidate programme in 2022, before being elected to Parliament.

Reflecting on his first day in Westminster, he says: "Going into parliament that day was the first time I'd ever been into the chamber, so it was a real experience that will live with me forever."

He says he works six days a week and thinks it's more than just a job, adding: "It's more of a calling because you are always on call, people scrutinise everything you do, and the rewards are amazing, but also the stress and the experiences are quite challenging sometimes."

Some of the trinkets Reader has collected over the last year sit on the windowsill in his Westminster office

Reader's office is in Richmond House, and the building previously housed the Department for Health.

He shares the space with another MP. In his half of the room, he's got a desk area for his staff, and plenty of trinkets that he has collected over the past 12 months from his travels.

"The commando comic I got when I visited the commandos in Plymouth," he explains, going through his shelf.

"Some little logistics trucks because one in five people in Northampton South work in the logistics sector, and then little trinkets I've collected when I've been to different events and other things, including my boarding passes from when I went to the Falklands."

In the corner of the room is a pop-up banner from the All Party Parliamentary Group on Wrestling, which Reader chairs.

Over the summer recess, his office offers two tours every Tuesday and Wednesday for community groups in Northampton.

"I thought it was a nice way to use this privilege of having full access to a UNESCO World Heritage site, a beautiful building, to demystify it for people and show them the other side of parliament that they would maybe never see."