First words give grounds for optimism in our new MPs

Of the 335 new MPs elected last month, 139 have made their first speeches in the three weeks that the House of Commons was sitting before the summer recess. I have watched or read all of them, and they give a good idea of the kinds of people who will influence this Labour government.

- JOHN RENTOUL

The overall standard has been high. In recent parliaments, there has been a disparity between the two main parties, with new Conservative MPs tending to be more impressive and to come from more varied backgrounds than Labour ones. Keir Starmer has pushed hard to raise the quality of Labour selections and, on the evidence so far, he has succeeded.

One theme that was more prominent than in the past was the need for more civility in public life. The convention is that maiden speeches – and they are still called that, despite woke – are a chance to pay tribute to predecessors, including defeated opponents of another party. This means they are usually gracious and bipartisan, but these speeches often went beyond that, noting that trust in politics was low and how important it was that MPs should set an example by disagreeing agreeably.

Matthew Patrick, the new Labour MP for Wirral West, put it best when he made three promises in honour of the late Frank Field, MP for the Birkenhead part of the Wirral: “My commitment is to listen in good faith to arguments made in good faith. My commitment is to change my mind when it is right to do so. And my commitment is to stand up for the things that I believe in, so that others might do the same.”

Associated with this were the tributes frequently paid to House of Commons staff, particularly those who had worked so hard to help new MPs find their way and settle in. I don’t remember hearing so many of those before.