ANNE McLAUGHLIN Glasgow North East MP speaks to Evening Times about how she is settling into Westminister.

I remember thinking when I wasn't re-elected to the Scottish Parliament in 2011 having served two years that it was no bad thing for politicians to get back into the 'real' world. I considered that if, in the future, I was elected I would at least have the benefit of hindsight and the experience of the 'system' which would surely give me a head start.

So here I am, elected again, this time to Westminster so a bit of system learning to get used to but not much different to the Scottish Parliament surely? Wrong! It is completely different, so much so that I don't know where to start.

Everyone down here is extremely helpful in steering us through the arcane and sometimes bizarre rituals and confusing do's and don'ts. It's just that there's an awful lot of steering to be done to power through my strong instinct that rarely pulls me in same direction as Westminster.

I am getting used to seeing men and women in strange clothing and feeling like I am on the set of some period drama. It's all very nice but I feel a lot more comfortable at home where parliament staff dress like you and I.

I am still trying to figure out who Black Rod is and why he is thus named. I am intrigued by the Serjeant at Arms and the fact that I have somewhere to hang my non existent sword but nowhere for an office yet.

I am trying to develop my nod! As you enter and leave the commons chamber you are required to nod or bow to The Speaker. There is no point in rebelling on the grounds that we're a' Jock Tamson's Bairns. The Speaker decides who gets to speak so best to keep on his good side. Unfortunately my nod currently looks like I'm heading a ball whilst others who shall remain nameless look like they're delivering a Glasgow kiss! Still, practice makes perfect and judging by the amount of time we SNP MPs are spending in the chamber actually participating in I'm sure we'll perfect our nods in no time.

You will also know by now that we are banned from clapping. Instead we must practice making strange animal noises. One of the loudest 'hear hear's when The Speaker told us we were being disrespectful by clapping came from a Labour MP close by who had spent the previous two minutes speaking very loudly to a colleague as Angus Robertson made his speech. So I gave him my definition of 'disrespectful' and requested if he intended to carry out a long loud conversation he do it elsewhere. That primary teaching course is coming in handy. I know I'm one of the new intake but I'm also an adult and I know the difference between good and bad manners.

It is very obvious that many of the long term Members simply do not know what to make of us. Some Labour members are still to realise that the SNP shares what are considered Labour values ie social justice, equality and fairness, but they'll figure it out.

We sit opposite the Tories and you can see many of them looking at us curiously like they are not sure if we are from the same planet. Having watched them in action, I can confirm it. We're not.

It is however fascinating to watch them watching us. And the staff are watching us too. I won't name specific jobs but the ordinary workers right across the board keep telling us how excited our arrival makes them. They want us to shake things up, they're tired of the same old, same old and many wish they could have voted for us. And I regularly hear from them that we are by far the friendliest most respectful, political grouping in there. Each time they tell me that I go and ruin it all by clapping!

It will take the entire five years I am elected for me to figure out the place although hopefully I will always find the exit of an evening. I wouldn't want to stay the night after hearing several ghost stories from a resident polis! It's a beautiful place with incredible architecture, magnificent statues, huge candelabras and chandeliers that 'light up the paintings on the wall' but I yearn for the light, the simplicity and the modernity of our own parliament.

Speaking of the state opening, what a magnificent fuss! What a lot of time spent on pomp and ceremony. So different to the Scottish Parliament where the attitude is 'right let's get the sleeves rolled up' - more or less.

That seems to be the main difference. There is very little time afforded to rituals and standing on ceremony in the Scottish Parliament. Westminster so far has been the opposite but the 56 are going down there to fight for our constituents and to protect Scotland's interests and if the way to do that is to navigate our way through these rituals that's what we'll have to do.