Witnessing the election of new MPs you almost feel as if you are watching gladiators traipsing into the Colosseum, although admittedly we the audience anticipate a rather more civilised battle will commence. Morituri te salutant does not ring out in the Westminster estate on day one, but there is unmistakeable pomp and grandeur as MPs again pledge allegiance to the Queen. Some 140 MPs have now entered the parliamentary fray for the first time, and over the following pages we reveal our Top 25 selection of the best new MPs. We have no doubt that many of them will have lofty ambitions: some, no doubt, have aspirations to be the next Gladstone, Attlee or Thatcher, but where to begin? In these pages, Brooks Newmark, the former minister for civil society and MP for Braintree from 2005 to 2015, offers some advice about how to make a success of your early days in the House of Commons in a crowded field. We look forward to seeing who follows Brooks’s advice with interest – and to hearing some Ciceronian maiden speeches. In compiling this list, we have taken into account several factors as indicators of potential. One, of course, is the seat the new MP will be representing. The new-look Conservative Party saw the arrival of new figures such as Mark Fletcher, who unseated Dennis Skinner to represent Bolsover, and Ian Levy, who pulled off an unlikely victory to turn Blyth Valley blue for the first time. Their inclusion on our list is a reminder that the new intake represents a changing Conservative Party that could shape the next five years. Richard Holden is another Conservative who claimed a long-standing Labour seat against the odds. Like Claire Coutinho and Laura Trott, he is also one of a few Conservative special advisers who are well-acquainted with the corridors of power. Indeed, some on our list have had head starts in the Johnson administration: Danny Kruger, Andrew Griffith and James Wild have all had direct access to the prime minister since he took office in July 2019. Many candidates have previously worked as political researchers or assistants for an MP in London or in constituencies. Others fulfilled a similar role at the Senedd or Holyrood. A few, including Claudia Webbe (Lab), have advised a directly elected mayor – Ken Livingstone in Webbe’s case. We also couldn’t pass over new ‘Baby of the House’ Nadia Whittome (Lab). Arriving in the Commons young can be a predictor of future success: her predecessors include David Steel, Charles Kennedy and Jo Swinson, who all went on to lead their party, while Tony Benn, David Lammy and Roy Jenkins have become political icons. And Whittome has already hit the ground running with her promise to donate over half of her salary to charity. The collapse of Labour’s ‘red wall’ was the biggest story of the election, but there were other stories, too. The SNP continues to dominate Scottish politics: two of the party’s big beasts, Kenny MacAskill and Alyn Smith, are included here. Both are hugely qualified, having served as a Scottish cabinet member and MEP respectively; we expect them to make a name for themselves on the green benches soon. Wendy Chamberlain, meanwhile, gave the Liberal Democrats a reason to cheer by winning North East Fife from the SNP. Previous government experience is in evidence when it comes to MPs from elsewhere in the Union: all four new Northern Ireland MPs who are expected to take up their seats have been members of the National Assembly. We include one of the two new SDLP MPs, Colum Eastwood, and the second-ever elected Alliance MP, Stephen Farry. Previous political experience is clearly a boon for anyone seeking a general election candidacy. Roughly 50 per cent of these 140 new MPs have held roles at local level: council experience remains the best first step on the path to the Commons. We have selected some local politicians with impressive track records, such as three-times-elected councillor Florence Eshalomi, now MP for Vauxhall (Lab, Co-Op), and Gareth Bacon (Con), a GLA member since 2008. Meanwhile, Alex Davies-Jones (Lab) has only been a councillor since 2017, but her strong local roots suggest she will be a powerful advocate for Wales, and might have something fresh to offer Welsh Labour, which lost six seats. Our research team also took into account breadth of life experience. For instance, Selaine Saxby (Con) was elected to her council, North Devon, in May 2019, but her formidable track record as an entrepreneur with recent teaching experience ensured her inclusion. Before entering parliament as MP for Stafford, Theo Clarke (Con) launched an online magazine about Russian culture, and carried out important international development work as founder and CEO of the Coalition for Global Prosperity. Fleur Anderson (Lab), who won the once safe Conservative seat of Putney, also has experience in international development as global head of campaigns at WaterAid from (2012-16). With Alicia Kearns (Con) having worked for the FCO in important mat...