Australia’s youngest MP is now Australia’s youngest former MP, with Wyatt Roy finally conceding over the weekend that he had lost the seat of Longman to Labor’s Susan Lamb. Roy spoke to Ms Tips’ colleague at StartUpSmart while packing up his office, reflecting on his time in Parliament and what comes next:

“‘I’ve been able to take a step back and have a look at everything I’ve achieved at 26,’ he says.

‘I’ve spent one in five days on Earth as a member of parliament, and I think I’ve changed my local community for the better and particularly in the innovation space we’ve started a very vital conversation for the future of the country.'”

The former assistant minister for innovation was a poster boy for the start-up sector, and Roy thinks he could get a job in the sector:

“’I’m looking forward to starting the next chapter of my life,’ Roy says.

“’It’s still early days but there are amazing opportunities for anyone that wants to be involved in the Australian innovation ecosystem. Perhaps I might find myself playing a different role in the private sector.’”

He wouldn’t be the first minister to move into the sector they were responsible for in government, Labor’s Martin Ferguson was minister for energy and resources and since resigning from Parliament has chaired the advisory board for the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association. Former Liberal resources minister Ian Macfarlane is also in the box seat to become Queensland’s Resources Investment Commissioner, and former minister for small business Bruce Billson has taken up the role of executive chairman at the Franchise Council of Australia.