This summer we have seen the Olympics and Paralympics in Paris with Team GB delivering their finest. You have to admire them and their skills.

I’m welcoming the chance to relay what it’s like to be the new MP for our town. I can tell you; it is definitely a marathon and not a sprint! You need to recruit staff, set up offices in the constituency and in London. There is casework to be done, events to attend and so on.

Athletes know there is a finishing line in sight – for new MPs that’s not the case. There are many hurdles to negotiate, but unlike a hamster in the wheel going round and round, you do eventually get somewhere.

This year’s General Election saw the starting gun fired and an influx of new MPs. There’s been so many of us elected, that the usual processes are taking longer than normal. Everyone needs to get to grips with what was known as “the post bag” – and now of course, the email in-box too.

There are lots of other things MPs need to do once elected, like training on how things work, finding your way round, getting sworn in, speaking in Parliamentary debates, and dealing with the packed legislative agenda.

At the start, I was reminded of Roger Daltry’s hit, “One man band”. But progress is being made. This week, I’ve been allocated an office in the same building as Watford’s former MP. We shall see if it is the same one! Until now, I’ve been hot-desking, but with staff now in place, everything is really moving forward at pace.

I’ll be starting advice surgeries shortly and will advertise details.

  • Matt Turmaine is Labour MP for Watford