Lara Bird

Lara Bird

Lara Bird
MP
Official portrait, 2026
Member of Parliament
for Arbroath and Broughty Ferry
Incumbent
Assumed office
18 June 2026
Preceded byStephen Gethins
Majority5,278 (21.7%)
Personal details
BornPyla Lara Bird-Leakey
1998 (age 27–28)
PartyScottish National Party
RelativesColin Leakey (grandfather)
EducationUniversity of Sheffield (LLB)
London School of Economics (LLM)

Pyla Lara Bird-Leakey[1] (born 1998[2]) is a Scottish National Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Arbroath and Broughty Ferry since 2026.

Early life and career

Bird grew up in Kirriemuir and was privately educated at the High School of Dundee. Her father, Charles Bird OBE, served in the military, as a diplomat and as a lecturer at the University of St Andrews. Her mother is English, and her maternal grandfather, Colin Leakey, was a plant scientist and member of the Leakey family.[2][3]

She first became involved in politics at the age of 16, around the time of the 2014 Scottish independence referendum.[2]

Bird graduated from the University of Sheffield with an LLB[4] and then moved to London, where she completed an LL.M in Public International Law at the London School of Economics.[5] Bird was called to the English Bar at Middle Temple, one of the four Inns of Court, in 2025.[1] She worked for the SNP at Westminster as a foreign affairs and defence researcher, and then as a policy advisor. She moved back to Scotland after the 2024 United Kingdom general election and now lives in Broughty Ferry.[2] She was a PhD student at King's College London until she quit her studies to run for Parliament.[6][3]

Parliamentary career

On 20 May 2026, Bird was selected as the SNP candidate for the 2026 Arbroath and Broughty Ferry by-election, called to replace Stephen Gethins.[7] She was elected on 18 June, holding the seat for the SNP with an increased majority of 4,961,[8] and was sworn in as a Member of Parliament on 22 June.[9] She visibly crossed her fingers as she swore the oath of allegiance, saying, "I take this oath only so that I can serve the people of Arbroath and Broughty Ferry. My first allegiance is, and always will be, [to] the sovereign people of Scotland."[10]

Bird faced criticism when videos prior to her election emerged showing her speaking with an English accent.[11] Since her election, she has spoken with a Scottish accent.

References

  1. ^ a b Middle Temple. "Call to the Bar ... 9 October 2025" (PDF). Retrieved 23 June 2026.
  2. ^ a b c d O'Neil, Sean (11 June 2026). "EXCLUSIVE: Arbroath and Broughty Ferry SNP byelection candidate Lara Bird opens up on her background". The Courier. Archived from the original on 19 June 2026. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
  3. ^ a b Cumming, Ed (24 June 2026). "New SNP MP's accent flips from English to Scottish". The Telegraph. Retrieved 25 June 2026.
  4. ^ Cesaire, Avery (25 June 2026). "King's College London student becomes an MP after winning parliamentary by-election". The Tab. Retrieved 29 July 2026.
  5. ^ "Lara Bird-Leakey". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
  6. ^ Bird, Lara (23 January 2026). "A state can only exempt itself from international law if others allow it to". The National. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
  7. ^ Peacock, Laura (20 May 2026). "SNP announce candidates for two Westminster by-elections". The National. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
  8. ^ Morrison, Hamish (18 June 2026). "Arbroath and Broughty Ferry by-election results in charts and graphs". The National. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
  9. ^ "House of Commons - Hansard - Volume 788: debated on Monday 22 June 2026". hansard.parliament.uk. Retrieved 23 June 2026.
  10. ^ Holl-Allen, Genevieve (23 June 2026). "Scottish MP crosses her fingers while swearing allegiance to the King". The Telegraph. Retrieved 23 June 2026.
  11. ^ Cumming, Ed (24 June 2026). "The Telegraph". The Telegraph.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)


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