Laura Kuenssberg was born on 8 August 1976 in Rome, Italy, and grew up in Glasgow, Scotland. Her father was a businessman and her family includes professionals in public service and finance. She attended Laurel Bank School and later studied History at the University of Edinburgh, graduating with first-class honours, and spent time at Georgetown University in the U.S. on a political journalism exchange.

Kuenssberg began her journalism career as a trainee at the BBC in the early 2000s, working on regional news before becoming political correspondent. She moved briefly to ITV News as their first Business Editor, then returned to the BBC as Newsnight correspondent. In 2015, she became BBC News’s first female Political Editor, covering major events including general elections and Brexit.

In 2022, Kuenssberg stepped down from political editor and took over Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, the BBC’s flagship Sunday morning politics programme on BBC One, continuing her role in shaping national political coverage.

Laura is married to James Kelly, a management consultant. They met at the University of Edinburgh and have been together since 2019. The couple does not have children.