‘I was incredibly angry – so I thought I’d put myself forward’: meet seven Labour MPs new to parliament

From left: Yuan Yang, Hamish Falconer, Terry Jermy, Miatta Fahnbulleh, Calvin Bailey, Marie Tidball and Sam Carling. All portraits by Antonio Olmos for the Observer Photograph: Antonio Olmos/The Observer

As the Labour party conference gets under way in Liverpool today, one of the most striking outcomes of the 2024 election will be on full display: more than half of the Labour MPs elected in July – 231 out of 411 – are completely new to the job.

For many of them, the past 11 weeks have been a tornado of activity as they try to set up offices and hire staff while contending with overflowing inboxes and adapting to some of the odder features of their new workplace, from bobbing in the chamber to jarring sound effects in the halls. Even those familiar with Westminster life are still getting lost in the maze of corridors.