At a glanceKerry McCarthy is a Labour MP for Bristol East, and has represented the seat for 21 years, 2 months. They have cast 481 votes in Commons divisions (84% attendance), tabled 1,887 written questions and registered 2 financial interests.
Attendance is votes cast as a share of the 575 Commons divisions since the 2024 election; Kerry McCarthy did not vote in 94. A rebellion is a vote against the way most of their own party voted; free votes, where no party line applies, are left out.
Party-loyalty figures are our own analysis of the official voting records (recorded votes only; they do not describe the formal whip). How we work this out.
Biography
Current roles
- Bristol East Representation · Elected 1 time since 4 Jul 2024
- Labour Party since 5 May 2005
Voting record
Voting alignment
Votes most like
-
Andrew Cooper
Labour
100.0% · 450 of 450 shared votes
-
Sam Carling
Labour
100.0% · 441 of 441 shared votes
-
Linsey Farnsworth
Labour
100.0% · 432 of 432 shared votes
-
Jeff Smith
Labour
100.0% · 430 of 430 shared votes
-
Andrew Ranger
Labour
100.0% · 415 of 415 shared votes
Votes least like
-
Alex Burghart
Conservative
0.0% · 0 of 339 shared votes
-
Priti Patel
Conservative
0.0% · 0 of 310 shared votes
-
Mr Mark Francois
Conservative
0.0% · 0 of 282 shared votes
-
Mrs Kemi Badenoch
Conservative
0.0% · 0 of 138 shared votes
-
Alan Mak
Conservative
0.3% · 1 of 364 shared votes
Alignment figures are our own analysis of the official voting records (recorded votes only; they do not describe the formal whip). How we work this out.
Register of financial interests
From the official Register; shown as registered.
Visits outside the UK2
- International visit to India between 25 May 2026 and 30 May 2026 (registered 11 Jun 2026)
- International visit to Indonesia between 26 March 2026 and 10 April 2026 (registered 21 May 2026)
Written questions
Animal Products: Labelling
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress has been made on introducing clearer country-of-origin and method-of-production food labelling to support higher animal welfare standards since the Government response to
Answer · 16 Jul 2026
As set out in the Government’s animal welfare strategy, and the Farming Roadmap published in June 2026, we are committed to ensuring that consumers have access to clear information on how and where their food was produced. To support this, we will continu...
Food: Public Sector
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which public bodies will be required to comply with the revised Government Buying Standards for food and catering services.
Answer · 16 Jul 2026
Defra is considering the policy options available to deliver further on its ambitions for public sector food, including potentially updating the Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering Services. Defra has not yet made any decisions on the conten...
Food: Public Sector
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure that public sector food procurement meets the proposed requirement for 50% of food spend to meet higher environmental and welfare standards.
Answer · 16 Jul 2026
The Government has already published a new national procurement policy statement which sets expectations for government contracts to favour products certified to high environmental standards that British producers are well-placed to meet. Data collection ...
Government Departments: Food
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress she has made on updating Government Buying Standards relating to food procurement.
Answer · 16 Jul 2026
Defra is considering the policy options available to deliver further on its ambitions for public sector food, including potentially updating the Government Buying Standards for Food and Catering Services. Defra has not yet made any decisions on the conten...
Animal Welfare
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she will bring forward regulations under the Animals (Low Welfare Activities Abroad) Act 2023.
Answer · 14 Jul 2026
The Animals (Low Welfare Activities Abroad) Act 2023 provides a framework for the introduction of future bans on the advertising and offering for sale, in England and Northern Ireland, of low-welfare animal activities taking place abroad. As set out in th...
Textiles: Recycling
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the forthcoming Circular Economy Strategy will include proposals to introduce Extended Producer Responsibility for the textiles sector.
Answer · 9 Jul 2026
This Government is committed to transitioning towards a circular economy where resources are kept in use for longer and waste is designed out. This systemic change, with investment in green jobs and vital infrastructure, builds a path to economic growth, ...
Foster Care: Finance
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Answer of 10 April 2026 to Question 126120, when her Department will publish further details on the scope of its in-depth study of fostering finances.
Answer · 29 Jun 2026
The department plans to focus on fostering allowances, fees, as well as other financial support that carers receive, and use this to inform analysis alongside existing data on recruitment and retention.To inform this work, more data is needed about the fi...
Care Homes: Fees and Charges
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of reducing care home costs for elderly and disabled people.
Answer · 22 Jun 2026
Fee rates are set by providers of adult social care, the majority of which are in the independent sector. The Department does not have powers to set or recommend the level of fees that care homes charge. However, all businesses are required to comply with...
Early day motions
| 11 Apr 2016 | ANIMALS | 9 sig. |
| 9 Nov 2010 | BRISTOL CITY FOOTBALL CLUB AND THE FIFA WORLD CUP 2018 | 18 sig. |
| 27 Nov 2007 | CARE FOR CYSTIC FIBROSIS PATIENTS | 66 sig. |
| 18 Oct 2007 | COMMUNITY CHAMPIONS | 31 sig. |
| 30 Apr 2007 | FARROWING CRATES FOR PIGS | 102 sig. |
| 21 Mar 2007 | COMMEMORATING WILLIAM WILBERFORCE AND THE PASSING OF THE ABOLITION OF THE SLAVE TRADE ACT | 68 sig. |
Speeches in the chamber
14 Jul 2026 NHS Buildings: Extreme Heat
I appreciate the Government’s plans to upgrade the NHS estate, but the heatwaves are happening now, and staff and patients are enduring unbearable conditions: wards without air conditioning, temperatures of more than 30°, radiotherapy mach…
14 Jul 2026 NHS Buildings: Extreme Heat
19. What assessment he has made of the potential impact of recent heatwaves on hospitals.
13 Jul 2026 State of Climate and Nature
I thank the Minister for including land use and food systems within this outline. It is so important that that is included as part of the triple challenge of climate, nature and food. We know that we can meet our climate and nature goal…
6 Jul 2026 Environmental Protection
The Minister has touched on organised crime. As I am sure she is aware, modern slavery can be a real issue within the waste crime sector; we have had some powerful debates on that issue in the Chamber. The waste crime action plan sets out…
30 Jun 2026 Knife Crime: Custodial Sentences
Mr Speaker, I know that you are a great supporter of the Parliamentary Knowledge Foundation. Next Thursday, it will be bringing MPs to Empire Fighting Chance, a boxing gym in my constituency that has been involved in the Government and Idr…
25 Jun 2026 National Resilience
I am sure that I am not the only one who feels that they are not designed to withstand the current heat—and neither are many of our public buildings and infrastructure. May I urge the Minister to make sure, while also talking to colleagues…
25 Jun 2026 National Resilience
5. What steps his Department is taking to improve national resilience.
24 Jun 2026 Climate Change
Does the hon. Lady agree that we will never persuade other countries to take action to reduce their carbon emissions unless we show global leadership? Will she join me in congratulating the Prime Minister, who went to COP29 in Baku, announ…
24 Jun 2026 North Sea Oil and Gas
Something that has been missing from this debate is the opportunity we have to be the leading exponents of offshore wind, including floating offshore wind, hybrid assets and energy connection. When I was a climate Minister, I held the inte…
24 Jun 2026 North Sea Oil and Gas
About 90% of the reserves in the North sea have already been extracted. Has the hon. Gentleman looked at the analysis of how expensive it is to reach the rest of the reserves? One reason they are still there is that it is far more expensiv…
23 Jun 2026 Environmental Sustainability: UK-Indonesia Collaboration
I thank everyone who came along to support the debate, and I thank the Front Benchers for their replies. I was particularly glad to hear the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Fylde (Mr Snowden), show such enthusiasm for the global energ…
23 Jun 2026 Environmental Sustainability: UK-Indonesia Collaboration
On that specific point, Fairtrade was holding an event in the IPU room earlier and I was concerned to hear about the cost of complying with forest risk commodities regulation for indigenous farmers. They were citing figures in the tens—I t…
23 Jun 2026 Environmental Sustainability: UK-Indonesia Collaboration
It was good to talk to Nadine on the visit; she was a real source of expertise. I am glad to hear that, and if it is a possible answer to the issue, that is excellent. I will talk a little about the marine environment. We have quite a l…
23 Jun 2026 Environmental Sustainability: UK-Indonesia Collaboration
My hon. Friend is right. One of my concerns was that Bolsonaro was making legal what should clearly have been illegal. The counter-argument was that there was something slightly colonialist about dictating how a country should decide on wh…
23 Jun 2026 Environmental Sustainability: UK-Indonesia Collaboration
I was going to wind my hon. Friend up by saying that I have no idea how big Leeds is—slightly bigger than Bristol, I think—but he is right that delay has consequences. I gather that the Government have announced a consultation now, but we …
23 Jun 2026 Environmental Sustainability: UK-Indonesia Collaboration
That is probably the subject for another long debate, because it gets into the inequities in global food supply chains and making sure that farmers—whether in the hon. Gentleman’s constituency or the heart of the Indonesian rainforest—get …
23 Jun 2026 Environmental Sustainability: UK-Indonesia Collaboration
I could not agree more. I really appreciate all the interventions, which are a very good way of getting the debate flowing, but it is quite easy for me to lose my place. I was talking about the impact of mining, logging and urbanisation, a…
23 Jun 2026 Environmental Sustainability: UK-Indonesia Collaboration
I absolutely agree. I have just come from an event that Fairtrade is hosting in the Inter-Parliamentary Union room, at which people were talking, among other things, about the forest risk commodities legislation—I will come on to that lat…
23 Jun 2026 Environmental Sustainability: UK-Indonesia Collaboration
The hon. Member makes a very important point. At Foreign Office questions last week, I had the first question on the Order Paper, which was very ably answered by my hon. Friend the Minister. My question was about the Tibetan plateau, the e…
23 Jun 2026 Environmental Sustainability: UK-Indonesia Collaboration
I direct the hon. Gentleman to the Minister, because she is the one with the power to put him in touch with the embassy, for example. However, I know exactly what the hon. Gentleman is saying. I was at the desertification COP in Riyadh …
Source: contributions on parliament.uk.
Full parliamentary career
Government posts
- Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero) · Department for Energy Security and Net Zero 9 Jul 2024 – 7 Sep 2025
- Assistant Whip (HM Treasury) · HM Treasury 10 Jun 2009 – 6 May 2010
Opposition posts
- Shadow Minister (Climate Change and Net Zero) · Department for Energy Security and Net Zero 29 Jun 2022 – 30 May 2024
- Shadow Minister (Transport) · Department for Transport 10 Apr 2020 – 4 Dec 2021
- Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs · Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 14 Sep 2015 – 26 Jun 2016
- Shadow Minister (Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs) · Foreign and Commonwealth Office 7 Oct 2011 – 14 Sep 2015
- Shadow Minister (Treasury) · HM Treasury 8 Oct 2010 – 7 Oct 2011
- Opposition Assistant Whip (Commons) · Whips Office (Commons) 12 May 2010 – 8 Oct 2010
- Shadow Minister (Work and Pensions) · Department for Work and Pensions 6 May 2010 – 8 Oct 2010
Committee memberships
- Energy Bill [HL] 17 May 2023 – 29 Jun 2023
- Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill 18 Jan 2023 – 25 Jan 2023
- Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Bill 22 Jun 2022 – 7 Jul 2022
- Public Order Bill 25 May 2022 – 21 Jun 2022
- Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill [HL] 9 Feb 2022 – 10 Feb 2022
- Glue Traps (Offences) Bill 12 Jan 2022 – 19 Jan 2022
- Animal (Penalty Notices) Bill 1 Dec 2021 – 8 Dec 2021
- Environmental Audit Committee 2 Mar 2020 – 8 Jun 2020
- Petitions Committee 2 Mar 2020 – 8 Jun 2020
- Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee 11 Dec 2017 – 6 Nov 2019
- Environmental Audit Committee 11 Sep 2017 – 6 Nov 2019
- Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee 31 Oct 2016 – 3 May 2017
- Environmental Audit Committee 4 Jul 2016 – 3 May 2017
- Treasury Committee 12 Jul 2005 – 4 Jun 2007
Previous seats
- Bristol East · Elected 4 times 6 May 2010 – 30 May 2024
- Bristol East · Elected 1 time 5 May 2005 – 6 May 2010
Expenses
Source: IPSA (OGL v3.0)
Contact & offices
020 7219 4510
Parliamentary office
House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA
Constituency office
Constituency office
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about Kerry McCarthy, answered from official Parliament data.
Who is Kerry McCarthy?
Kerry McCarthy is a Member of Parliament representing Bristol East in the House of Commons. See Kerry McCarthy's official Parliament profile.
Which party does Kerry McCarthy represent?
Kerry McCarthy sits as Labour. See Kerry McCarthy's official Parliament profile.
Which constituency does Kerry McCarthy represent?
Kerry McCarthy is the Member of Parliament for Bristol East. See Kerry McCarthy's official Parliament profile.
How long has Kerry McCarthy been an MP?
Kerry McCarthy has served in the House of Commons for 21 years, 2 months. See Kerry McCarthy's official Parliament profile.
What registered interests are listed for Kerry McCarthy?
Kerry McCarthy has 2 entries in the Register of Members' Financial Interests. See Kerry McCarthy's official Parliament profile.
Source: this MP's official Parliament profile. Last updated 26 Jul 2026.