As the Conservative party looks likely to descend into painful post-match analysis and a fractious leadership contest, it is joined on the opposition benches by an unusually varied set of other parties. Four MPs will take their seats for the Greens and five for Reform, together with an unprecedented number of independents and various representatives of regional parties – including a small surviving rump of just nine SNP MPs after a disastrous night for the Scottish nationalists.  

But the biggest impact on Parliament will be the outcome of the Liberal Democrats’ smart and focused campaign – apparently helped by tactical voting from constituencies determined to remove their Conservative incumbent.

Returning to its former position as the third party in the Commons will give the Liberal Democrats greater speaking opportunities and committee roles, which in the last parliament were afforded to the SNP. These will give the party slightly greater visibility to demonstrate how it is serving the interests of its new constituents – essential if it is to repeat its electoral success at the next election. But this will be an adjustment – it has been a long time since the Liberal Democrats last had to field a full set of frontbench spokespeople.  

The high-drama of the post-Brexit years, with its soap opera of meaningful and indicative votes and late-night defeats, saw Parliament take centre stage.  But the reality is that Parliament’s role has been increasing marginalised, with the last government content to side-step meaningful scrutiny – and therefore rejecting the opportunity to see its plans tested and improved – and MPs showing a disappointing lack of interest in or perhaps understanding of – the often-unglamorous role they can play.  

In some respects, a generation disrupted by the Covid pandemic never learned what the role of an MP in Parliament could be. Training for new MPs will be even more essential than normal as over half of MPs arrive in Westminster for the first time. Thanks to Rishi Sunak’s precipitate choice of election date a few weeks of summer will provide crucial window to assist in this process.