General Election 2024: Cambridgeshire MPs and Parliamentary candidates react to announcement

MPs and parliamentary candidates have been reacting after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed the next general election will be held on Thursday, 4 July.

Conservative MPs currently occupy six seats in Cambridgeshire, with the seventh - Cambridge - held by Labour’s Daniel Zeichner.

But this summer’s election will also include the new St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire constituency, taking the number of MPs in Cambridgeshire to eight.

Conservative MP Anthony Browne, who currently represents South Cambridgeshire, will be switching to the St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire seat for this summer’s election.

Reacting to the news of a 4 July election, he said: “I’m looking forward to the general election, and having the chance to campaign on the work I’ve been doing over the last few months and years.

“Since being selected to represent St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire, I have focused on addressing key issues impacting our communities. These efforts will continue, as I work to improve local infrastructure, advocate for better transport links, address water shortages, and fight for better services - from challenging Astrea in St Neots to getting a GP built for Northstowe. As MP for South Cambridgeshire, I’ve already made progress in these areas, and I’m eager to continue this work for the new constituency.

“The upcoming election presents a real opportunity to build on these achievements, and a real threat to our local standard of living. Many of us have seen the results of Lib Dem, Labour, and coalition governments - they lead to the congestion charge, increased taxes, part-time councils, and Huntingdonshire’s green bin charges.

“I’ll be fighting for the chance to continue my work to improving the lives of those in St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire, tackling the challenges we face, and seizing the opportunities ahead.”

Mr Browne will reignite his battle with Liberal Democrat Ian Sollom, who he narrowly beat in 2019 in South Cambridgeshire by 31,015 votes to 28,111.

Mr Sollom said this evening: “This election is our chance to bring change to St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire and get an MP who can stand up for our area.

“The Conservatives of Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss have let us all down. With a great track record in recent local and national elections, the Lib Dems are best placed to get the Conservatives out in St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire. It will be very close here, so every vote will count.

“I and my family have made St Neots my home, and we love it here. But we have experienced first hand how hard it is to even get an appointment at the GP. My priority is to fight for better NHS GP and dental services across the constituency.”

Pippa Heylings, the Liberal Democrat Parliamentary candidate for South Cambridgeshire, says the seat is “neck and neck”.

She explained: “This election is a once-in-a-generation chance to kick the Conservatives out of power and finally deliver the change our area so desperately needs.

“It’s clear that only the Liberal Democrats can beat the Conservatives in South Cambs, it’s neck and neck here and every vote will count.

“People are telling me they’re fed up with years of chaos and neglect under this out-of-touch Conservative government.

“After years of struggling to get a GP appointment, soaring rents and mortgages, and our precious rivers and chalk streams being polluted by filthy sewage, it’s time for a change in South Cambridgeshire.

“As the next MP for South Cambridgeshire, I would stand up for local health services, tackle the sewage scandal which has wreaked havoc locally and be a strong voice for our community in Parliament.”

Conservative candidate for South Cambridgeshire, Chris Carter-Chapman, said locally the Lib Dems have shown they will prioritise “wasteful schemes like the four-day working week”.

He said: “The Prime Minister has called the general election on a day that we have demonstrated that our plan on the economy is working. Inflation is failing and this will make a real difference to the cost of living for residents right across South Cambridgeshire. The choice before voters is a clear one, we can either stick with the plan or we can risk all of the progress we have made with a Labour government.

“Locally, the Liberal Democrats have shown that they are prioritising wasteful schemes like the 4-day working week, on full pay, for council staff whilst pushing our council tax up by the maximum amount. They support East West Rail that will decimate our villages, C2C that will destroy Coton Orchard and the environmentally damaging relocation of the Honey Hill sewage works.

“Both Labour and the Lib Dems support road charging in Cambridgeshire and I believe this to be a deeply regressive tax that will hit the poorest in society the hardest. As the local candidate who grew up here, I am deeply worried about what their policies would mean for our rural communities.

“There is a clear choice in front of voters on the 4 July and I humbly ask for their support.”