It’s a common complaint from younger generations that the politicians of today rarely understand life from their point of view.
But the success of one MP in Thursday night’s general election will surely leave many of those critics without a leg to stand on.
As Britain’s first MP to be born in the 21st Century, Labour’s Sam Carling is now the youngest Commons member, leading him to affectionately be known as the ‘Baby of the House’.
The 22-year-old Cambridge University researcher won his seat in North West Cambridgeshire by just 39 votes, beating out his 63-year-old opponent who was first elected when Sam was just a toddler.
His parents were even among the crowd as he gave his victory speech in the early hours of Friday morning, following a dramatic recount, and were there to drive him home when they left just after 6am.
People may think the youngster has a lot to learn, but he has already been a city councillor for the last two years and insists people in their 20s are just ‘as capable as anyone else’ to an MP.
Originally from the north east of England, Mr Carling was a pupil at the £32,430-a-year Barnard Castle School in County Durham.
He says he bagged a staggering six A* grades in his A-Levels in 2020 – which is when schools were unable to sit summer exams due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
The new Labour MP says he doesn’t ‘eat much meat at all…only chicken and fish’ and refuses to eat duck meat.
Speaking to student magazine Varsity, he said he only really tucks into chicken and fish, adding: ‘I used to go and feed ducks a lot when I was a kid so I will not eat duck. Ever.’
He is however a fan of the occasional meal deal, with two mains as his go to – a coronation chicken sandwich or a plant-based hoisin duck wrap.
But he says Fridge Raiders and a Dr Pepper are always a must for his choice of a snack and a drink.
He went on to study at natural sciences at the University of Cambridge after netting straight A*s in biology, chemistry, physics, maths, further maths and an extended project qualification, his LinkedIn says.
Describing himself as a ‘serial multitasker’, ambitious Mr Carling was forced to balance his studies with his fledging political career at university.
He joined Cambridge’s Labour Club rising to its co-chairman. He was also the Student Union President at Christ’s College.
In May 2022, he was voted onto Cambridge City Council representing West Chesterton for Labour.
His time at the council has seen him campaigning to tackle the ‘rancid filth’ and sewage blighting Cambridge’s River Cam. But his colleagues joke he that all his work has to fit ‘around his paper round’.
He also held the post of Executive Councillor for Open Spaces and City Services – and once boasted of helping to approve a new Taco Bell fast-food outlet in the heart of Cambridge’s Market Square – close to his university halls.
But the busy 22-year-old has previously admitted he is ‘very bad at getting up’ in the morning and would regularly work until 3am, although this may also be down to his insomnia which only means he gets around five hours sleep each day.
During his time studying for a degree, the aspiring politician also claimed to have uncovered an issue with Cambridge’s Student Union’s data collection systems which he said had inadvertently ‘outed countless’ LGBTQ students.
And the new Labour MP has also indicated his support for the pro-Palestine cause, telling Varsity in May the ‘fighting [in Gaza] needs to stop now’ – while also backing people’s ‘right to protest’, which saw hundreds of students set up camps outside the university calling for a ‘ceasefire’ in the war between Israel and Hamas.
When news broke in May that Mr Carling was to be Labour’s parliamentary candidate, the 22-year-old was ruthlessly trolled online over his age, with people calling him a ‘Labour creche kiddie’ and ‘nerd’, with some asking: ‘Have you ever had a job before?’
Sharing a series of pictures of the abuse he claimed to have receive on X, Sam said: ‘I’m sometimes asked for my views on why we can’t get more young people to stand for office, with only 2% of councillors under 30.
‘See below a selection of the age-related tripe I have received in just the first two days of being a parliamentary candidate. That should explain it.’
He was ruthlessly heckled online for his age when he was announced as a parliamentary candidate in May, branded a ‘labour creche kiddie’.
Workers in the House of Commons are still to confirm if Mr Carling is now Britain’s youngest sitting MP.
But a spokesman for the House of Commons told : ‘We haven’t fully confirmed all biographical data for new MPs and are unable to share information about MPs’ date of birth on an individual basis.
‘However, it does appear that Sam Carling is the youngest MP as our researchers are not aware of any younger at this point.’
In 2015, Mhairi Black become the youngest MP to be appointed since 1832 when she was elected to the SNP aged just 20 years and seven months old.
Ms Black, the party’s former deputy leader at Westminster, announced last year she would be stepping down at the next General Election.