Sam Carling
British politician (born 2002) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
British politician (born 2002) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Samuel Carling (born 2002) is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for North West Cambridgeshire since 2024. He is the first British parliamentarian to be born in the 21st century.[1] By convention, as the youngest member of Parliament, he is accorded the honorary style of Baby of the House.[2][3] Carling has represented the ward of West Chesterton on Cambridge City Council since 2022.[4]
Sam Carling | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Member of Parliament for North West Cambridgeshire | |
| Assumed office 4 July 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Shailesh Vara |
| Majority | 39 (0.1%) |
| Member of Cambridge City Council for West Chesterton | |
| Assumed office 9 May 2022 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Samuel Carling 2002 (age 21–22) County Durham, England |
| Political party | Labour |
| Alma mater | Christ's College, Cambridge (BA) |
| Website | samcarling |
Samuel Carling was born in 2002[5] and raised in Crook, County Durham.[6] He described his background as being from "a totally apolitical family, in quite a deprived part of the north east of England".[2]
Originally from Bishop Auckland, Carling completed his GCSEs at Wolsingham School before attending sixth form at Barnard Castle School, an independent boarding school in County Durham, with an academic scholarship.[7] He achieved five A* A-level grades and an Extended Project Qualification.[8] The cancellation of some A-level exams during the COVID-19 pandemic sparked Carling's interest in politics,[9] which developed at university and inspired him to run for elected office.[10]
While at Barnard Castle School, Carling received the Salters–Nuffield Prize[11] for "exceptional performance in biology" from the Worshipful Company of Salters with an essay entitled "Could carbon quantum dots have applications in bioimaging?"[7]
Aged 18, Carling then went to read natural sciences at Christ's College, Cambridge,[2] where he became actively involved in Cambridge University politics. A staff writer for Varsity,[12] Carling served as president of Christ's College JCR and co-chairman of the Cambridge University Labour Club, before being elected an Officer of the Cambridge Union[13] and then as a member of the Cambridge University Council.[14][4][lower-alpha 1] In 2023, he graduated with first-class honours and became an undergraduate tutor.[16]
While studying for a Master of Philosophy (MPhil) postgraduate degree at Cambridge,[17] Carling was elected to Parliament in 2024,[4] the academic year having only just ended. Carling remains a student in the Department of Pathology as a biomedical researcher.[18][19]
In 2022, while still a second-year undergraduate, Carling ran on the Labour slate for election to Cambridge City Council to represent the ward of West Chesterton.[4] At the local elections held on 5 May 2022, Carling narrowly defeated incumbent Liberal Democrat councillor Jamie Dalzell,[20] increasing Labour's majority on Cambridge City Council with the Liberal Democrats losing three seats and the Greens gaining one. Carling became the first Cambridge student in memory to successfully contest a City Council seat.[21] He was re-elected at the 2024 Cambridge City Council election. During his tenure, Carling held the office of Executive Councillor for Open Spaces and City Services,[22] and was a member of the Skills Committee of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority for two years. He was an advocate of improvements to adult education and transport throughout Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.[23]
Carling announced his intention to step down as a Cambridge city councillor as soon as a by-election could reasonably be held and, in the following week on 18 July, he resigned from the council's cabinet.[24]
At the 2024 general election,[25] Carling successfully contested the constituency of North West Cambridgeshire for the Labour Party. Campaigning for better public services,[25] he defeated incumbent Conservative MP Shailesh Vara being returned to Parliament by a narrow margin of 39 votes, verified by a recount.[26][27] The seat had been held by the Conservatives since its creation in 1997.[28] At the age of 22, he was the youngest MP elected at the 2024 election and became Baby of the House.[5][28] Carling is the first British MP to be born in the 21st century.[1] He is the Labour Party's joint-youngest MP, tied with Malcolm Macmillan, who was elected at the same age in 1935.[2] On 24 July 2024, Carling made his maiden speech in a debate on education and opportunity.[29]
Carling resides in Cambridge. He is an apprentice member of the Salters' Company.[30] In an interview with The Times, Carling described himself as a member of the LGBT community.[6] He further stated: "I don't see any reason why I won't re-stand. But I'm 22, and I don't intend to be in the House of Commons for 40 years. I will come out and do something else eventually."[6]
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