The ALP national conference spotlight was well and truly on Bill Shorten as he picked a fight with the party's Left faction over asylum seeker turn-backs. But the conference was also a chance for the next generation of Labor leaders to shine.

Here are five young Labor MPs everyone is talking about:

ED HUSIC

NSW seat of Chifley

Arguably, Husic's star has already risen. He's been in Parliament for five years, has served in some prominent roles and is a confident media performer with a national profile. But while he's the oldest MP on this list, he's only 45 and has plenty more time to leave his mark. He's fiercely intelligent, a great communicator and most people who meet him can't help but like him.

TIM WATTS

Victorian seat of Gellibrand

At only 33, Watts is the youngest on this list but he's already achieved a great deal. Whip-smart with a keen sense of humour, he studied at the London School of Economics and has worked as a political advisor, a private sector executive and solicitor. He is releasing his first book – Two Futures – next week. It's co-authored by the next person on this list.

CLARE O'NEIL​

Victorian seat of Hotham

The 34-year-old O'Neil was a Fulbright Scholar at Harvard's Kennedy School before becoming Australia's youngest female mayor. Elected to Parliament in 2013 she's already established a reputation as one of smartest people in the building. Two Futures asks the big picture questions about the challenges Australia will face in the coming decades.

TERRI BUTLER

Queensland seat of Griffith 

A former industrial lawyer, the 37-year-old Butler won the seat of Griffith after Kevin Rudd retired last year. She has quickly established a reputation as an intelligent MP and a powerful advocate for social justice. She has been in the news lately as the Labor sponsor of the cross-party bill to legalise same-sex marriage.

PAT CONROY

NSW seat of Charlton

Labor through and through, Conroy is a former union official who's all about jobs and the economy. As head of Labor's "Waste Watch" committee he's recently been building his profile prosecuting the case against Speaker Bronwyn Bishop. The 36-year-old can be fiery, often getting evicted from question time, but he's also a straight shooter with the biggest grin in politics.

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