Ian Sollom MP Newsletter - 7th July

Welcome to the latest of my newsletters, updating you on my work in Westminster and across St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire.

As I write, the country once again contemplates a new Prime Minister. Our seventh in just 10 years, it's a pattern that no longer looks like a series of one-off crises confined to one party, but something more systemic. Whatever you make of the politics, I think most people would agree that this level of turnover makes it harder for long-term thinking and investment, both in our area and across the country.

Fortunately, whatever's happening in Westminster, our communities and local groups in St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire just keep getting on with it. Some of their stories are below alongside my Westminster updates.

Climate and environment: Histon & Impington Sustainability Group

The climate crisis is always a big theme in my inbox, but particularly as we currently endure record high temperatures, I know many people are concerned that not enough is being done to tackle the effects of climate change and to develop resilience against ever harsher weather conditions.

The Histon and Impington Sustainability Group is doing an excellent job of raising climate concerns and implementing local initiatives to do their bit to tackle them. I was very pleased to be invited to a meeting of the group recently and to participate in a productive Q&A with its members.

Interesting questions were raised about renewable energy, building standards, and the need for better design and implementation of solar panels in new developments. We also explored issues of water management, flood risk across Cambridgeshire, the ecological impact of farming on Fenland soils, and the UK’s status as one of the most nature-depleted countries on the planet.

Among the initiatives organised by the group are waste-reduction schemes such as ‘Swish’, eco home tours, tree planting and measures to support wildlife. Members stressed to me the importance of collecting good local data and participating in joined up thinking on land use when addressing local environment issues – and they are absolutely right. Long-term, evidence-led work is essential if communities are to move forward sustainably.  

The meeting really showed the depth of local climate and environmental interest in Histon and Impington and the value of open conversations in addressing concerns and planning future work. It was a pleasure to meet such an active and committed group, and I look forward to further engagement with them in future.

Defence: Solving armed forces recruitment issues for young people

There is much talk at the moment of the importance of our country’s defence capabilities. With the twin threats of Putin in Ukraine and heightened tension in the middle east, we Liberal Democrats welcomed the Government’s commitment to boost defence spending to 2.5%, but we also believe that it could go further, and we continue to call for cross-party talks to agree a way forward to reaching 3%.

Aside from general spending, one issue brought to me by constituents has been the incredibly slow recruitment process to enter the armed forces.

When a young person wants to join the armed forces, that brave choice should be honoured as soon as possible – not least when we are seeing such a crisis in youth unemployment. Yet I have heard from constituents who have waited months, even years, to get through the bureaucracy. Many are choosing different career paths, having lost confidence that they will ever see the end of delays.

I recently challenged the Secretary of State for Defence (John Healey at the time) on what he is actively doing now to build relations with recruits ahead of the roll-out of the Government’s new digital entry point for the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force in 2027. If the answer is nothing – as it seemed to be when I asked the question – then young people could still face a whole year of delays before seeing any change. That is not good enough.

I will be continuing to push for the recruitment crisis in the armed forces to be addressed as soon as possible and will certainly be holding the Government to account on delivering genuine change in the roll-out of the new scheme next year.

Community visits: Cambridgeshire County Show, The Big Listen, Northstowe Midsummer Festival

As we enter the summer months, I always look forward to meeting local people, businesses and groups at the wide variety of community events happening across the constituency.

At the Cambridgeshire County Show, it was a pleasure to celebrate the work that farmers and other rural businesses do in our area. Highlights of the day included: hearing about the work of the Great Ouse Valley Trust, who I hope to join on a walk along the riverside very soon; learning about the use of wetlands materials as sustainable insulation from The Wildlife Trust; catching up with the NFU about agricultural strategy; and of course, getting a good look at all the equipment and tractors on display. 

In St Neots, residents may have noticed a long table that popped up for the day in the Market Square a few weeks ago. This was part of St Neots Initiative’s ‘Big Listen’ event – a day to discuss what we all love about the town, what could be improved, and where we see it all going in the next few years. I was pleased to open the event alongside Leader of Huntingdonshire District Council, Sarah Conboy, and Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Paul Bristow, and then enjoyed spending the rest of the day chatting to friendly faces and plenty of new ones about their vision for St Neots.

 The Northstowe Midsummer Festival brought out a great crowd for the official opening of the Unity Centre – helped by the rain staying away. I'd visited the centre before, but it was a real pleasure to see it in full flow with the Green outside. Between an ice cream and plenty of conversations with residents, I also caught up with the mayor and local town councillors about next steps for the land around the centre and development of the town hub. The Unity Centre is certainly a good reminder of what's possible when community facilities are designed to work with the space and the community around them.

Housing development: East West Rail, Universal UK Resort, Tempsford, Local Government Reorganisation

Pressing the Government to engage in genuinely joined up thinking on the development in our area is something that continues to feature in much of my work. I have written before about this in relation to health services and also water management, and over the past few weeks I have also been raising it in relation to transport and tourism.

As the final stage of public consultation on East West Rail concluded, I reiterated my call for the Government to consider proposals for a new station to the east of St Neots. While the stations already proposed at Tempsford and Cambourne will go some way to help residents access opportunity at the Universal Resort in Bedfordshire, in the proposed new town at Tempsford and beyond into Milton Keynes and Oxfordshire, for the railway to really fulfil its potential, these stations must be genuinely accessible to residents – and not just by car.  

I have pressed the Transport Secretary to properly invest in sustainable bus, cycle and pedestrian transport links to the proposed new stations, as well as pushing her to consider the potential for an EWR station to the east of St Neots in order to truly connect our town in with the Government's plans for the region.

In a similar vein, having written to the department a number of times on the subject I met with Housing Minister, Baroness Taylor, to continue raising my concerns about flaws in the Local Government reorganisation process. The consultation period on the proposals received from councils in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough has now closed. The Government will be making a decision on proposals very soon, and I will provide an update as soon as possible.

I will continue to raise the needs of St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire residents at every opportunity, and with every Government department, during this period of development.

Changes to airspace design at London Luton Airport

I continue to hear from residents about the impact that the new Luton Airport flightpath is having on them. Having spoken to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) throughout the consultation and implementation period, it was clear that they have little power to force airlines to stick to approved flightpaths and reduce noise disruption.  

I recently met with Luton Airport and NATS (formerly National Air Traffic Services) to raise this, who maintained that the shortcuts taken by planes across our area are useful to reduce fuel usage and emissions, and that these are perfectly consistent with approved flightpaths. They did concede, however, that this wasn't necessarily clear to residents in the consultation on the changes. Though both were unwilling to change their practices unless they deem noise levels to be particularly bad, they are now working with residents in Impington and in the Gransdens to monitor the levels.

I will now be writing to the Transport Secretary to ask that enforcement mechanisms on flightpaths be addressed in the upcoming process of introducing a UK Airspace Design Service (UKADS).

Young people summer work experience sessions

Having received a high volume of requests for work experience this summer, I am unfortunately unable to offer opportunities to everyone.

However, I am running two workshop sessions for young people in the constituency to come along and hear more about my work and the work that my team do. These will be in Northstowe and St Neots.

These are primarily aimed at current and prospective A-level Politics students at local sixth forms, but also at students of related subjects, and Year 10 students who expressed an interest in political work experience. If you know someone who might be interested in joining please do contact my office at ian.sollom.mp@parliament.uk and we will be in touch.

Parliamentary Business

I always endeavour to represent residents of St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire in Westminster on issues you care about. Thank you to everyone who writes to me each week, expressing your views, sharing campaigns, and inviting me to attend various meetings in Parliament.

Here is a taste of some of the work I have been doing in Westminster recently: 

• I continue to speak to a range of skills providers, employers, and representative organisations in my capacity as Universities and Skills spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats. Recently, this has included meetings with: Gatsby Foundation, British Retail Consortium, Enginuity, EFI Group, and BAE systems. 
   

• I have received many requests from constituents to sign Early Day Motion 240, which calls on the Government to withdraw its draft guidance relating to the EHRC ruling. I have put my name to this. The guidance threatens to shut trans people out of daily life, while continuing to leave organisations open to legal risk. I will continue to push for genuine democratic scrutiny of any guidance wherever I can.
   
• At the Second Reading of the Government's Health Bill, I spoke to express my dismay at the Government's plans to do away with independent scrutiny of the NHS, which has clear implications for patient safety. Having supported families affected by failings at Cambridge University Hospitals to address concerns about a paediatric orthopaedic surgeon, I know that the existing systems for scrutiny have not been perfect - but this is by no means a reason to do away with them entirely. 
   
• Having been contacted by a specialist manufacturer in the constituency which will be affected by changes to steel import quotas and tariffs, at an Urgent Question in Parliament I pressed the Government on the huge impact this will have on the competitiveness of British businesses. The Minister asked for more information about the case, and my team and I will now be working to support the business in making its case for exemptions and a transitional period before the changes are made..
   
• I attended a debate on a public petition relating to brain cancer research after being contacted by constituents who have experience fighting for access to treatment. Cancer should be a top priority for any Government - and the completely full chamber and public gallery absolutely showed the strength of feeling on this issue.  

Surgeries and Further Information

Each week I have been holding both in-person and online surgeries to speak directly to constituents about their issues. If you feel you have a problem I could help with, or you have a campaign matter you would like to discuss with me, please don’t hesitate to contact me at ian.sollom.mp@parliament.uk to request a surgery appointment.   

I will continue to keep you updated about my work to represent the constituents of St Neots & Mid Cambridgeshire. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch, volunteer or get involved with our campaigns.

If you are writing as a constituent, I will need to verify that you reside in the St Neots & Mid Cambridgeshire parliamentary constituency to reply and deal with your case. Therefore, please ensure that you have included your full name and home address in your email.    

I receive a significant volume of campaign and casework emails each day. Therefore, I ask for your patience as my team respond to new emails. Please know your messages are being received and we are working as fast as we can to respond to every inquiry.

Best wishes,

Ian Sollom MP

St Neots & Mid Cambridgeshire