Chris Coghlan

Christopher Austin Francis Coghlan is a British Liberal Democrat politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Dorking and Horley since 2024. He previously co-founded the Renew Party in 2018.

Early life and education Coghlan grew up in Peaslake, a village near Guildford, Surrey. He graduated from King's College London in 2001, later completing a master's degree in finance at London Business School in 2012 and gaining a Master of Public Administration degree at Harvard Kennedy School in 2014.

A former officer in the Army Reserve, Coghlan was called up to serve in Iraq as a military advisor in 2020. but resigned because he was "demoralised by the failure of our politicians to deliver opportunity in government, fight Corbyn and a hard Brexit".

Political career Coghlan stood as an independent anti-Brexit candidate in Battersea in the 2017 general election. In 2018, he co-founded the Renew Party, a minor centrist political party that stood for "a second referendum and a tech revolution to leave no one behind".

Coghlan was elected to Mole Valley District Council for the ward of Dorking North in the 2021 council election as a Liberal Democrat.

In the 2024 general election, Coghlan was elected as the Liberal Democrat MP for the new seat of Dorking and Horley with 41.9 per cent of the vote and a majority of 5,391.

Personal life Coghlan lives in Dorking with his wife Clara and their three daughters. He was barred from receiving Holy Communion due to his support for the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill.