Who is Alistair Carns? The new Birmingham Selly Oak MP after Labour retains seat

Nathan Clarke

5 July 2024 at 0:11 am·2-min read

Alistair Carns is the new Labour MP for Selly Oak. — -Credit: (Image: Alistair Carns / Twitter)

Selly Oak has a new Labour MP after the party retained the seat in the general election. Labour's Alistair Carns, a former marine, will represent the constituency in parliament after securing a X majority against his Conservative rival.

Alistair Cairns was selected to contest the seat after long-standing MP for the area Steve McCabe decided to step back from the role. McCabe had been a Birmingham MP since 1997 - and Labour has held the seat of Selly Oak in every election since 1987.

The job will Carns' first forray into politics having spent the majority of his career serving in the military. Here's everything you need to know about the new MP for Selly Oak.

Who is Alistair Cairns?

Colonel Alistair Carns is a former Royal Marine who has served in the military for 24 years. He was awarded the Military Cross for his service in Afghanistan and only left the marines weeks before the general election. It is unclear whether Carns has any links to the area of Selly Oak.

Speaking to Forces News ahead of the vote, he said: "I decided to come into politics because I think this is an extension of service - I think it's a duty to serve and I wanted to serve a broader church."

Carns is one of 14 veterans who stood in the UK general election for the Labour Party. He said he had a strong camaraderie with his former servicemen. He said: "You never lose that from the military.

"The military is the most fantastic organisation when it comes to camaraderie, to unity and to collective spirit. And it won't be lost when we go into politics. I had 24 years of experience in the military, every major campaign, loved my job in the military.

"I gave it up to come and deliver change for the Labour Party and that's because I believe in Keir Starmer's leadership and his stance on national security. It's very, very important to me."

Alistair Cairns (L) campaigning with West Midlands PCC Simon Foster prior to the election. -Credit:Simon Foster / Twitter

Birmingham Selly Oak 2024 election results

Labour's Alistair Carns won the seat with 17,371 votes, beating the Conservative candidate Simon Phipps who came second with 5,834 votes. Labour bagged a 11,357 majority.

Full set of results for Selly Oak as new MP gets to work.

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Who is Alistair Cairns?

Birmingham Selly Oak 2024 election results

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