Nathaniel Erskine-Smith (born June 15, 1984) is a Canadian lawyer and politician who has been the member of Parliament (MP) for Beaches—East York since 2015. A member of the Liberal Party, Erskine-Smith served as Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities from December 2024 to May 2025. Before entering politics, Erskine-Smith was a commercial litigation lawyer.

Erskine-Smith was born on June 15, 1984, in Toronto, Ontario, attending Bowmore Elementary School and Malvern Collegiate. His parents, Sara Erskine and Lawrence Smith, were public school teachers.

Erskine-Smith attended Queen's University, where he completed a Bachelor of Arts degree in politics in 2007, before completing law school in 2010. While a student at Queen's, he was an unsuccessful candidate for city council for Sydenham District in Kingston, Ontario, in the 2006 municipal elections coming in third despite being endorsed by the Whig-Standard and Queen’s Journal. Erskine-Smith described his attempt to Althia Raj as "naive" and that he knocked on no doors and spent his time researching local issues. He also attempted to start a business selling panini sandwiches from a trailer and hoped to start a catering business.

Erskine-Smith then went on to study political philosophy and constitutional law at the University of Oxford, where he earned a Master of Laws (BCL) degree in 2013. He focused on the evolution of section 7 of the Canadian charter, with references to assisted dying, prostitution and marijuana. In addition, during his time at both universities, he played baseball for both their teams as a pitcher.

Erskine-Smith practiced commercial litigation as an associate at Kramer Simaan Dhillon, after working as a law student at Aird & Berlis LLP. He told Raj that he found some advantages in commercial litigation, such as "fun to win," "argue," "do the research," and "prepare arguments," but felt like he could make a bigger impact advocating for issues that affect more Canadians.

Erskine-Smith also performed volunteer work for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association. He has taken on pro bono cases for a range of clients and causes, including a civil liberties case to protect religious freedom in Ontario's school system. In a notable civil liberties case in 2014, Erskine-Smith successfully argued against compulsory religious studies at publicly funded high schools in Ontario.

In November 2013, Erskine-Smith announced his candidacy for the Liberal nomination in Beaches-East York, citing Justin Trudeau's call for more youth involvement in politics, his advocacy for bottom-up democracy, and positive politics as reasons to run. Erskine Smith based his nomination campaign on lessons learned from his 2006 municipal campaign and signed up 900 riding members. In December 2014, he beat four candidates to become the Liberal nominee.

Erskine-Smith was elected to the House of Commons in the 2015 federal election. He beat incumbent MP Matthew Kellway, who was elected in 2011. During the campaign, Erskine-Smith received endorsements from the provincial Liberal Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) Arthur Potts and City Councillor Mary-Margaret McMahon.