Impington-born Conservative MP and ex IVC student Alicia Kearns talks to Lucy Callington about politics, Parliament and her never-ending to-do list.
Walking the corridors of Impington Village College and pacing the halls in Parliament – as an MP, Shadow Home Office Minister and Opposition Whip – may seem worlds away from each other, but, as Alicia Kearns reveals, one path led her directly to the other.
“Impington Sixth Form gave me the chance to understand the world views of people from so many different countries at a young age,” she explains, “which was an incredible opportunity and helped shape my interests and perspectives”.
Politics was always on Alicia’s radar. While still at school she was a member of the UK Youth Parliament and an activist for Amnesty International, before going on to study Social and Political Sciences at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge.
On being an MP (for Rutland and Stamford), she says: “There’s no other role where you can make such a difference helping people who’ve had every other door slammed in their face.”
“The dark days can be really dark”, she shares “and you sometimes see the very worst of humanity, but when you help someone or change a law that will save lives, it’s a feeling you can’t replicate”.
“No two days are the same”
Elected as an MP in 2019, Alicia explains that hers can be a job of two halves, as she spends Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays in Parliament focusing on debates, ministerial questions, committee work, votes and replying to emails from residents.
Then, for the latter half of the week, she’s back home in the community she serves, visiting local businesses, charities, schools and community groups, as well as holding advice surgeries and knocking on doors.
“Both sides of the job are intertwined,” Alicia explains, “the time I spend in the community tells me what needs to change, and my time in Parliament is where I can raise those concerns with Ministers, campaign for policy changes and try to secure national outcomes which will impact local people”.
No two days are the same and on any given day Alicia could ask a question in the morning in the House of Commons about a local issue, such as improving safety on the A1, before responding to a Home Office statement on terrorism or hostile activities by Russia in her role as a Shadow Minister later that day.
International relations
Although politics is Alicia’s focus now, it was IVC’s status as an IB World School and the French department in particular that made an impression on her schooldays, and perhaps launched a career marked with international appointments, such as becoming the first ever woman to be elected Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee in 2022 (and the youngest ever female Chair of any Select Committee).
She remembers: “we were given lots of opportunities to learn languages because of our proximity to the University of Cambridge”, she says, “and I will always remember having an exceptional French teacher at IVC. She was demanding, with high expectations of us all and a determination that we would meet them”.
An MP’s work is never done
“Much to my team’s frustration, I seem to always be adding to my to-do list!” Alicia says. “There’s always another family in need of help, a law to change, a campaign to push forward, or an issue to raise in Parliament – but that’s exactly what the job is about, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
And she tells me, learning to accept you can’t always solve every problem, is one of the hardest parts of her role. “But the difficult days are outweighed by the difference you can make” she concludes, “whether it’s helping a young mum get a new boiler installed within days after being left without heating for weeks, or getting someone in a dangerous situation to safety – those moments make it all worthwhile”.
Bright futures
Alicia is pleased to hear that IVC and IIC continue to put international issues and politics high on the agenda. This year sees the first cohort of year 10 students starting a Citizenship GCSE course, led by Mr Gee and there is also the annual Model United Nations of Cambridge (MUNoC), which takes place at the college – allowing students to represent countries in UN committees, debate global issues, negotiate alliances, and draft resolutions.
Alicia’s advice for students wanting to follow in her footsteps? “If you want to see the reality of politics, go and shadow a Member of Parliament – knocking on doors and experiencing what it’s like day-to-day”, she says.
“Or simply find an issue you’re passionate about in your local community, or nationally, and start campaigning.”
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