Ian Sollom

Sollom grew up in rural Shropshire, and was educated at a local comprehensive school^[2] before attending sixth form at King Edward VI College, Stourbridge. He gained a Master of Physics (MPhys) degree from St Hugh's College, Oxford,^[3] followed by a PhD in cosmology from Trinity College, Cambridge.

Before being elected to Parliament, Sollom worked as a business consultant in the energy sector, and served as a Liberal Democrat councillor on South Cambridgeshire District Council for Harston and Comberton from 2018 to 2022.^[4][5] He was the Liberal Democrats' parliamentary candidate for South Cambridgeshire in the 2019 general election, coming second with 42 per cent of the vote.^[6]

Sollom was elected as the Member of Parliament for the constituency of St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire in the 2024 general election, with 19,517 votes (36.9% of the vote) and a majority of 4,648 over second-placed candidate Anthony Browne, a Conservative. St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire was a new constituency created by the 2023 review of Westminster constituencies—Browne was the incumbent MP for South Cambridgeshire, parts of which were removed to create the new seat. Sollom's victory represented a nominal Liberal Democrat gain from the Conservatives, in line with the massive swing away from the Conservatives nationwide.