Essex's youngest councillor talks about his casual appearances on TOWIE and his pledge to change the way services are delivered

Essex's youngest County Councillor, from Braintree, first started his political career aged 18.

He has now been appointed a position on the cabinet, responsible for digital innovation.

Mr Canning, 23, who lives on the Fairview estate, said he has always had a passion for politics.

The ex- Tabor Academy and Colchester Sixth Form student started showing an interest in local issues when he was 13, and was invited to Parliament to have lunch with Brooks Newmark, former Braintree MP, to discuss ideas.

He said: "I have always been interested in political issues but at the time you don't think of it as politics, more getting involved in the community.

"The main issues were ensuring young people had things to do, and there was the issue of sending bright students in Braintree to schools outside the district.

"The other thing I passionately care about is mental health- it's something we don't talk about enough.

"I have friends that have suffered and I have lost a couple of close friends to suicide."

Knowing he wanted to make a difference from a young age, he became a member of the Braintree Youth Council aged 15.

By 18 he was elected as a District Councillor for Bocking Blackwater, and took up his first Essex County Council role at 22.

However it's not all work for Mr Canning, he also enjoys running and spending time with his family.

He said: "I'm absolutely terrible at football and my whole family is sporty so I took up running, I loved doing cross country and I'm now about to do my third marathon.

"I have have three brothers and a sister and 10 nieces and nephews- when I'm not doing my council work I'm with my family.

"I absolutely love them."

The councillor, who has worked as a management consultant, has also made cameo appearances on reality TV shows such as Made in Chelsea and The Only Way is Essex.

He appeared on the pages of The Metro, which confirmed he was "no tubby, wrinkly, wheezing middle-aged politician".

"It all started with a Tweet asking if people wanted to get involved in Made in Chelsea.

"It was a dent to my ego as when The Metro reported it they were saying I was not ugly, so I must be somewhere in between", he joked.

"I was really interested in knowing how those shows are put together, and it was an incredibly interesting experience.

"I went with a fairly open mind but it was impressive, it was like having a window into a bunch of real peoples' lives.

"I've been on TOWIE at the Christmas party which was quite fun, I spoke to some of them but was mainly milling in the background."

However when push comes to shove he knows how to get down to business.

He was deputy chairman of the under 30s Conservatives, a role which ended last year, but he still feels passionate about.

He said: "I got involved with the Conservatives quite young, it's important to find people you have something in common with.

"It was so I could have some people my age, obviously it was going to be intimidating as you're not sure how hard it's going to be.

"You don't know whether they are going to take you seriously, but luckily I have had some fantastic colleagues who value having diversity of opinions- I think people really respect that."

He said the County Council understands it needs to become digitally savvy.

"We have to save £1m a week in the next four years", he said.

"My new role in Digital Innovation looks at how the council can provide services that have the same quality but save money.

"One example is with mental health, as a big problem affecting people is loneliness and depression.

"We can use technology to help people bound to their homes by providing a networking service, so they can speak to people in the same situation."

When asked how he was going to tackle it, he said he would look to his nieces and nephews.

He said: "The youngest is three months and the oldest is nine- I think they will have a lot of influence over my job.

"They are definitely digitally natured. Ruby, who is six, can use an iPad better than my mum.

"The way she interacts with the world is completely different to how my parents would- it will influence how I try and shape the County Council services."