Calvin Bailey

Calvin George Bailey, (born 0) is a British Labour Party politician and former Royal Air Force officer, who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Leyton and Wanstead since 2024.

Early life and education
Bailey was born in 1977 or 1978 in Zambia. As a child, his family moved to London, where Bailey grew up in Plumstead and attended a now defunct comprehensive school. He was friends with the brother of Stephen Lawrence who was murdered in a racially motivated attack in 1995. Bailey graduated with a Master of Engineering (MEng) degree from the University of Exeter in 1999. He later completed a Master of Arts (MA) degree in war studies at King's College London in 2017.

Military service
On 3 October 1999, Bailey was commissioned in the Royal Air Force with the rank of pilot officer. He was promoted to flying officer on 3 April 2000, and to flight lieutenant on 3 April 2001.

In 2013, he was awarded the Air Medal by the President of the United States "in recognition of meritorious, gallant and distinguished services during coalition operations in Afghanistan". In February 2015, he was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) "in recognition of gallant and distinguished services in the field during the period 1 October 2013 to 30 June 2014". He received the Royal Air Force Long Service and Good Conduct Medal in 2018.

Bailey was promoted to wing commander on 30 August 2016. In 2020, he was officer commanding No. 903 Expeditionary Air Wing as part of Operation Shader. In May 2021, he became officer commanding No. LXX (70) Squadron RAF which operated the Airbus A400M Atlas. He was the detachment commander of the deployed Air Mobility Forces during Operation Pitting, the UK's military operation to evacuate British nationals and eligible Afghans from Kabul Airport, Afghanistan. It was his decision to double the number of passengers taken per flight, as the risk of overloading the aircraft was outweighed by the risk to the lives of those who would have been left behind.

Political career
On 4 July 2024, Bailey was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Leyton and Wanstead with 20,755 votes (47.5 %) and a majority of 13,964.

Personal life
Bailey has two daughters. He is a school governor at St John's Marlborough.