Birmingham Selly Oak: MP, 2024 result and local figures
The MP for Birmingham Selly Oak is Al Carns (Labour), returned on 4 July 2024. On 4 July 2024 Al Carns (Labour) won 17,371 votes, 45.2% of the valid vote; Simon Phipps (Conservative) came second with 5,834. Turnout, counted as valid votes over the electorate, was 50.8% (38,423 of 75,678); the winning margin was 11,537 votes.
Key figures
What the figures show
2,525 business sites were registered in Birmingham Selly Oak in March 2026 (2,425 a year before), and employed 24,000 people in 2024.
In 2024/25, 31.6% of children under 16 in Birmingham Selly Oak (6,307) lived in relative low income families once housing costs are taken off, says the DWP; the UK figure is 26.0%. Before housing costs the share was 27.3% in 2024/25, from 25.0% in 2021/22.
About 109,800 people live in Birmingham Selly Oak: the ONS figure for mid-2024 is 109,804. The estimate peaked at 110,037 in 2019. Children under 16 numbered 19,933; people aged 65 and over, 15,742.
Half of the homes sold in the year to March 2026 went for more than £260,000 and half for less. That is up 68% on £155,000 ten years before. It is the highest March-year median in the series, which starts in 1996. It ranks 245th lowest of 575 constituencies. The figure rests on 859 recorded sales.
Survey estimates for April 2025 to March 2026 have 76.9% of working-age residents in employment, within a margin of 9.3 points. The economically inactive share was 18.9%.
Median annual pay for full-time work was £35,968 for jobs in Birmingham Selly Oak and £37,972 for its residents (April 2025, ASHE). A year before, the residents' median was £36,570. The residents' figure ranks 298th lowest of 632 constituencies with an estimate. The latest year is provisional.
In September 2026, 6.5% of 16 to 64 year olds in Birmingham Selly Oak were claimants (4,850 people). September 2025 had 4,650.
At the 2021 Census there were 41,369 households and 4,984.7 residents per square kilometre; 31.1% of workers mainly worked from home and 16.4% of residents aged 16 and over were retired.
MP
Al Carns, Labour
- MP for Birmingham Selly Oak since 4 July 2024
Official UK Parliament page · Statements by Al Carns on this site
In Parliament
The 5 most recent spoken contributions by Al Carns in Hansard, from 19 October 2026 to 20 October 2026, quoted from the official report. Hansard search returns 581 spoken contributions by Al Carns since 4 July 2024.
I thank the Secretary of State for giving way. The reality is that, across the conventional force, we have seen an uptick in recruitment and a reduction in people leaving due to retention issues.
Read in Hansard (opening words; the full contribution is longer)
I thank the hon. Member for the intervention, but when the records exposed threaten either national security or individual security, we must take that into account.
Read in Hansard (opening words; the full contribution is longer)
I cannot give way because I am intervening on someone else. We may just want to have a think about that. If we put ourselves in their position, the system now makes it much more difficult to get to the truth.
If we step back and have a think about where we are, a terrorist, a solider or an individual who was engaged in the troubles over the past 10, 20 or 30 years, who remembers having engaged in kinetic activity—having killed someone or conducted something of violence—and who wants …
Read in Hansard (opening words; the full contribution is longer)
Drones are changing the way we fight and the structures used to fight. America is creating the robotic uncrewed systems combatant command; Germany is creating an uncrewed regiment; and the Ukrainians have created the Unmanned Systems Force.
Read in Hansard (opening words; the full contribution is longer)
Read from the Hansard API on 26 October 2026. Up to two items per debate; remarks under 40 characters are left out. All contributions in Hansard.
General election, 4 July 2024
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Change in share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al Carns | Labour | 17,371 | 45.2% | −10.5 |
| Simon Phipps | Conservative | 5,834 | 15.2% | −16.4 |
| Erin Crawford | Reform UK | 5,732 | 14.9% | +12.2 |
| Jane Baston | Green Party | 4,320 | 11.2% | +7.6 |
| Kamel Hawwash | Independent | 2,842 | 7.4% | |
| Dave Radcliffe | Liberal Democrat | 2,324 | 6.0% | −0.2 |
Result summary as published: Lab hold. Change in share is in percentage points against the notional 2019 result on the new boundaries. Source: House of Commons Library, election results (data, read 14 October 2026).
Results on these boundaries
| Date | Election | First | Second | Majority | Turnout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 July 2024 | General election | Labour 45.2% | Conservative 15.2% | 11,537 | 50.8% |
| 12 December 2019 | General election (notional result on these boundaries) | Labour 55.7% | Conservative 31.6% | 11,645 | 63.4% |
Only results on the constituency boundaries first used at the 2024 general election are shown. The 2019 figures are the House of Commons Library's notional estimates of how votes cast in 2019 would have fallen on these boundaries, not a result that was declared. Source: House of Commons Library, constituency results.
Councils
Birmingham Selly Oak lies within Birmingham.
- Birmingham E08000025
Who has power over Birmingham Selly Oak
Every body that makes decisions for Birmingham Selly Oak, from the street up to the G20. Each one links to its page on the official record. How the ten levels work.
Level 1: Neighbourhood and community power
Residents' and tenants' groups, neighbourhood forums and local policing panels.
Level 2: Parish, town and community councils
Parish, town and community councils, where the area has them, sit below the council.
Level 3: Local councils
Level 4: County councils, combined authorities and metro mayors
- West Midlands Combined Authority combined authority
- West Midlands Police police force
- Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust NHS
- Birmingham Women's and Children's NHS Foundation Trust NHS
- NHS Birmingham and Solihull Integrated Care Board NHS
- Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust NHS
- West Midlands in official figures
Level 5: Devolved and state governments
England has no devolved parliament of its own: its laws are made by the UK Parliament.
Level 6: National government
- Birmingham Selly Oak this page: Al Carns (Labour) MP
- All 650 MPs votes, interests and costs
- UK government and Parliament official figures and sources
Level 7: Regional blocs and supranational bodies
- Council of Europe and the European Court of Human Rights (CoE / ECtHR) The UK Government says the United Kingdom was one of the Council of Europe's founding members.
Level 8: The UN and global treaty bodies
- United Nations (General Assembly and Security Council) The UN lists the United Kingdom as a member admitted on 24 October 1945.
- United Nations Security Council (UNSC) The UK is one of the five permanent members of the Security Council and holds the veto, according to the UN.
- NATO NATO lists the United Kingdom among its 12 founding members, which signed the North Atlantic Treaty in Washington, D.C.
- World Health Organization (WHO) WHO's list of member states includes the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
- World Trade Organization (WTO) The WTO says the United Kingdom has been a WTO member since 1 January 1995 and a member of GATT since 1 January 1948.
- Commonwealth of Nations The UK is one of the 56 members, one of three European members with Cyprus and Malta, and the Commonwealth Secretariat is headquartered at Marlborough House in London.
Level 9: The IMF, World Bank and global finance
- International Monetary Fund (IMF) The UK has been a member since 27 December 1945 and has a quota of SDR 20,155.1 million (IMF country page for the United Kingdom).
- World Bank Group (WBG) The UK holds 3.75% of voting power in the IBRD (data as of 30 June 2026) and 6.92% in IDA (as of 30 June 2026), according to the World Bank's voting tables.
Level 10: G7, G20, Davos and global forums
Sources
| Figure | Period | Publisher | Read | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | mid-2024 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Claimants as a share of residents aged 16 to 64 | September 2026 | ONS | 29 October 2026 | data · area |
| Claimant count | September 2026 | ONS | 29 October 2026 | data · area |
| Employment rate, aged 16 to 64 | April 2025 to March 2026 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Median full-time pay of residents | April 2025 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Median full-time pay of people working here | April 2025 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Median house price | the year to March 2026 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · release |
| Homes sold | the year to March 2026 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · release |
| Children in relative low income families, after housing costs | 2024/25 | DWP | 14 October 2026 | data · release |
| Children in relative low income families, before housing costs | 2024/25 | DWP | 14 October 2026 | data · release |
| Business sites (local units) | March 2026 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| People employed by businesses here | 2024 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Economically inactive, aged 16 to 64 | April 2025 to March 2026 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Households | Census 2021 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Residents per square kilometre | Census 2021 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Workers mainly working from home | Census 2021 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Residents aged 16+ who are retired | Census 2021 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
"Data" is the file or query each figure was read from (its SHA-256 is in the link title); "area" shows the same table for this constituency alone.
Common questions
Who is the MP for Birmingham Selly Oak?
UK Parliament lists Al Carns, Labour, as the Member of Parliament for Birmingham Selly Oak since the July 2024 general election.
What was the 2024 general election result in Birmingham Selly Oak?
Al Carns (Labour) won with 17,371 votes, a majority of 11,537, on a turnout of 50.8% (House of Commons Library).
What is the unemployment claimant rate in Birmingham Selly Oak?
6.5% of residents aged 16 to 64 in September 2026, 4,850 people, on the ONS claimant count.
What is the average house price in Birmingham Selly Oak?
The median price paid was £260,000 in the year to March 2026 (ONS, from HM Land Registry sales).
What is the average salary in Birmingham Selly Oak?
Median full-time pay of residents was £37,972 a year in April 2025 (ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings).
How many children in Birmingham Selly Oak live in low income families?
DWP counts 6,307 (31.6% of under-16s) in relative low income after housing costs for 2024/25.
What is the population of Birmingham Selly Oak?
The ONS estimate for mid-2024 is 109,804 residents.
Built 14 October 2026 from official records; how these pages are compiled. This page lists what the record shows and gives no verdict on the MP or the area. Link moved or figure wrong? Tell us.