North West Cambridgeshire MP Sam Carling to drop city councillor role

North West Cambridgeshire MP Sam Carling who has been juggling two political roles for nine months is to stand down this week as a city councillor.

Mr Carling was a Cambridge City councillor when he won the North West Cambridgeshire parliamentary seat with a majority of just 39 votes at the general election last July.

His victory made him the UK youngest MP at the age of 22.

He vowed at the time that he would look to stand down as a city councillor in the months ahead.

Mr Carling said: “I will be standing down as councillor this week, in order that the resultant by-election takes place on the same date as the Cambridgeshire County Council elections.

"This is much more cost-effective than having a standalone election.”

Mr Carling was elected as a councillor for the West Chesterton ward on Cambridge City Council in 2022.

He was then re-elected in the ward in May 2024 and served as the cabinet member for Open Spaces and City Services on the authority.

He gave up the cabinet role soon after becoming an MP and vowed after the general election triumph that he would not take up the allowance to which councillors are entitled.

At the time he told the Peterborough Telegraph: “My intention now is to step down from Cambridge City Council at some point in the next nine months, following discussion with colleagues and an assessment of how long it will take to wrap up key projects and pieces of casework for residents.”