“Congratulations on becoming a Member of Parliament. You have now joined the ranks of one of

the least admired groups of individuals in the country.”

The essential guide for new members of parliament – Survival

guide, The House

“The interesting thing I have discovered over the last week is that we have been

using different words but we mean similar things…What I call liberalism David

Cameron calls the Big Society.”

Nick Clegg, 19th May 2010

“Perhaps more so than ever, the public are crying out for the independently-

minded MP” The essential guide for new members of parliament – Survival Guide, The House

“If an organisation relies on a third party to put its case – don’t trust it. The best lobbying always comes from the horse’s mouth….

So if a letter is “pp’d” throw it away. If it’s a circular of any kind to all MPs, ignore it.”

Advice from Peter Luff Conservative MP and former managing director of lobbying company.

The essential guide for new members of parliament – Survival Guide, The House

On Basic priorities:

“If you have more than three priorities, you’re deluding yourself. That’s called a

shopping list.”

Handbook for Ministers, National School of Government

Decide on a lifestyle:

“You have a duty to the taxpaying public to keep yourself in good physical and mental

condition. Exhaustion and stress aren’t going to lead to better decisions. You’re probably already exceeding EU Working

Time Directive limits.”

Handbook for Ministers, National School of Government

Get in touch with the frontline:

“Accept the fact that – insulated in your nicely carpeted office, floating in the

Whitehall bubble of briefing notes and lines to take…you are likely to lose touch

with important bits of reality.”

Handbook for Ministers, National School of Government

“The general public with probably be less reticent than officials about telling you the

bad news – as you will know from your constituency surgeries if you’re an MP.”

Handbook for Ministers, National School of Government

“If you talk to any MP who has served as a shadow minister, junior minister or select committee

chairman, they will tell you the same thing: the committee corridor and its offshoots in Portcullis

House, is where much of the real business of Parliament gets done…”

Health select committee report on the smoking ban

Public administration committee report on the Freedom of Information Bill

The essential guide for new members of parliament – Survival guide, The House

“Private office want to help but the phone is ringing off the hock, emails are coming in

at 20 a minute, the diary has to be completely rearranged because of an

afternoon vote, press office need some lines approved urgently – and the biscuits

have run out.”Handbook for Ministers, National School of

Government

“The ushering-in of 232 new faces at Westminster means that the percentage

of blogging MPs will have swollen considerably. MPs themselves can forge and maintain an effective web

presence; this can be an unrivalled way of keeping in touch with constituents.” The essential guide for new members of parliament – Survival guide, The House

“Start blogging. Your position in Westminster will increasingly be about how you are

perceived more broadly, and blogging allows the democratisation of opinion forming and

comment.”

Advice to new MPs from Douglas Carswell, Conservative MP for Clacton.

The essential guide for new members of parliament – Survival guide, The House

“I was actually thinking of coming in today and applying for the course on communication skills, then I thought I might do public relations, then maybe

media management, drama and performance.”

Gordon Brown, on a visit to Adam Smith College in Kirkcaldy 14th May