Christopher Volante Hinchliff (born December 1993) is a British Labour Party politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for North East Hertfordshire since 2024. He was previously a North Hertfordshire District Councillor for Royston Palace.

Early life and education

Christopher Volante Hinchliff was born in December 1993. He was educated at The Howard of Effingham School in

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

and

King's College, Cambridge King's College, formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, is a List of colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college lies beside the River Cam and faces ...

, where he read history and was a member of

Cambridge University Labour Club The Cambridge University Labour Club (CULC), formerly known as Cambridge Universities Labour Club, is a student political society, first founded as the Cambridge University Fabian Society, intended to provide a voice for the British Labour Pa ...

. In 2016, he graduated with an MSc in ecological economics from the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

. Prior to his election to Parliament, Hinchliff was the policy and campaigns officer for the

Campaign to Protect Rural England Campaign or The Campaign may refer to: Types of campaigns * Campaign, in agriculture, the period during which sugar beet A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and that is grown commercially for sugar produ ...

Political career

Hinchliff joined the Labour Party as a young adult and assisted in

Daniel Zeichner Daniel Stephen Zeichner (born 9 November 1956) is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Cambridge since 2015. He has served as Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs since July 2024. ...

's successful campaign for

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

in the 2015 general election. He then led the

Thurrock Thurrock () is a unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Essex, England. It lies on the north bank of the River ...

Labour campaign in the 2018 local elections. In

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, he was elected as a

Labour and Co-operative Party Labour and Co-operative Party (often abbreviated to Labour Co-op; ) is a description used by candidates in United Kingdom elections who stand on behalf of both the Labour Party and the Co-operative Party. Candidates contest elections under an el ...

councillor for the Royston Palace ward of North Hertfordshire District Council. On the council, he served on the Employment Appeals and Royston & District committees, as well as the Cabinet Panel on the Environment. He was re-elected in

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

and appointed Cabinet Executive Member for Planning and Transport. Hinchliff was selected as the Labour candidate for North East Hertfordshire in May 2024. He won the constituency from the

Conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilizati ...

in the 2024 general election with a majority of 1,923 votes. Hinchliff resigned as a councillor on 2 September 2024 following his election to Parliament. In October 2024, he was elected to the

Environmental Audit Select Committee The Environmental Audit Select Committee is a Select committee (United Kingdom), select committee of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The remit of the committee is to examine ho ...

Political positions

Welfare

In September 2024, Hinchliff signed Neil Duncan-Jordan's

early day motion In the Westminster parliamentary system, an early day motion (EDM) is a motion, expressed as a single sentence, tabled by a member of Parliament, which the Government (in charge of parliamentary business) has not yet scheduled for debate. Hi ...

calling on the government to postpone ending the Winter Fuel Payment for pensioners without means-tested benefits such as

Pension Credit Pension Credit is the principal element of the UK welfare system for people of pension age. It is intended to supplement the UK State Pension, or to replace it (for example, if the claimant did not meet the conditions to claim a State Pension). I ...

. However, in the vote on the topic that same month, he voted to implement the restrictions. Following the March 2025 spring statement, Hinchliff opposed the cuts to several benefits including

Universal Credit Universal Credit is a United Kingdom based Welfare state in the United Kingdom, social security payment. It is Means test, means-tested and is replacing and combining six benefits, for working-age households with a low income: income-related Emp ...

as well as changes to the eligibility criteria for the

Personal Independence Payment Personal Independence Payment (abbreviated to PIP and usually pronounced as one word) is a welfare benefit in the United Kingdom that is intended to help working-aged people 16 and over with the extra costs of living with a health condition or a ...

(PIP), labelling them "crude measure designed to meet self-imposed fiscal rules". He stated that he believed in "a

welfare state A welfare state is a form of government in which the State (polity), state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal oppor ...

that supports everyone in times of need, protects the most vulnerable, and upholds equality and dignity for all".

Planning regulation and the environment

In April 2025, Hinchliff proposed a series of amendments to the government's Planning and Infrastructure Bill, stating that the government's approach had "a narrow focus on increasing housing supply, when we already have substantially more homes per capita than we did 50 years ago" and that the government's consultation with

HSBC HSBC Holdings plc ( zh, t_hk=滙豐; initialism from its founding member The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation) is a British universal bank and financial services group headquartered in London, England, with historical and business li ...

BlackRock BlackRock, Inc. is an American Multinational corporation, multinational investment company. Founded in 1988, initially as an enterprise risk management and fixed income institutional asset manager, BlackRock is the world's largest asset manager ...

and the

Phoenix Group Phoenix Group Holdings plc is a provider of insurance services based in London, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. History The company was founded in 1857 as The Pearl Loan Company an ...

on housing policy was a "problem" because "private finance will always prioritise profits over meeting housing needs". He also stated that there needed to be a "progressive alternative" to the plans, focused on building more affordable and

council house A council house, corporation house or council flat is a form of British Public housing in the United Kingdom, public housing built by Local government in the United Kingdom, local authorities. A council estate is a building complex containing ...

s. Hinchliff received criticism for his position, with opponents branding him a "

NIMBY NIMBY (, or nimby), an acronym for the phrase "Not In My Back Yard", is a characterization of opposition by residents to proposed real estate development and infrastructure developments in their local area, as well as support for strict land us ...

" and arguing that he was attempting to block new housing. Hinchliff has also opposed the expansion of

London Luton Airport London Luton Airport is an international airport located in Luton, England, situated east of the town centre, and is the Airports of London, fourth-busiest airport serving London. The airport is owned by London Luton Airport Limited, a comp ...

Electoral performance

House of Commons

North Hertfordshire District Council

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hinchliff, Chris Living people 1993 births Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Councillors in Hertfordshire Alumni of King's College, Cambridge Alumni of the University of Edinburgh UK MPs 2024–present