Rebecca Elizabeth Taylor (born 10 August 1975) is a British health researcher and

Liberal Democrat Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party, Democratic Liberal Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties have usually followed liberalism as ideology, although they can vary widely from very progr ...

politician, who was a

Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...

(MEP) for

Yorkshire and the Humber Yorkshire and the Humber is one of the nine official regions of England at the first level of ITL for statistical purposes. It is one of the three regions covering Northern England, alongside the North West England and North East England regio ...

from 2012 to 2014.

Early life and education

Taylor was born in

Todmorden Todmorden ( ; ) is a market town and civil parish in the Upper Calder Valley in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, England. It is north-east of Manchester, south-east of Burnley and west of Halifax, West Yorkshire, Halifax. In 2011, it had a popul ...

, a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rura ...

in the

Upper Calder Valley The Upper Calder Valley lies in West Yorkshire, in northern England, and covers the towns of Todmorden, Hebden Bridge, Mytholmroyd, Luddendenfoot, and Sowerby Bridge, as well as a number of smaller settlements such as Portsmouth, Cornholme ...

Calderdale Calderdale () is a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England, which had a population of 211,439. It takes its name from the River Calder, and dale, a word for valley. The name Calderdale usually refers to the borough through which the ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...

. Her father, Michael Taylor, was the leader of the Liberal Democrat group on

Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council, also known as Calderdale Council, is the local authority for the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. It is a metropolitan borough council and provides the majority of local gove ...

and her mother, Elisabeth Wilson, was the Lib Dem candidate for Halifax in the 2010 general election, placing third with 8,335 votes (19.1%). Taylor has a BA in

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

and

Management Studies Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administr ...

(1997) from the

University of Leeds The University of Leeds is a public research university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1874 as the Yorkshire College of Science. In 1884, it merged with the Leeds School of Medicine (established 1831) and was renamed Y ...

, an MA in

International Relations International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...

(2001) from the

University of Kent The University of Kent (formerly the University of Kent at Canterbury, abbreviated as UKC) is a Collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university based in Kent, United Kingdom. The university was granted its roya ...

. She then began working in health policy research and earned a Master in Public Health (2012) from

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

Political career

Taylor contested the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

constituency of

in the 2009 election. Third on the list of Lib Dem candidates, her party only received enough votes to elect the first candidate on the list, incumbent MEP

Diana Wallis Diana Paulette Wallis, (born 28 June 1954 in Hitchin, Hertfordshire) is a British former Liberal Democrats (UK), Liberal Democrat Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Yorkshire and the Humber (European Parliament constituency), Yorkshire ...

. Taylor then stood for election to the Parliamentary constituency of

Rotherham Rotherham ( ) is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It lies at the confluence of the River Rother, South Yorkshire, River Rother, from which the town gets its name, and the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don. It is the largest settlement ...

in the 2010 general election. She came third with 5,994 votes (16%). In June 2012, Taylor was appointed to the European Parliament to replace Diana Wallis, who resigned after almost 13 years in office. Wallis had been due to be succeeded by her husband and Communications Manager Stewart Arnold, who had been second on the list of Lib Dem candidates for the seat in the 2009 election, but declined the appointment after pressure from within the party due to complaints of nepotism. Arnold then went on to found the

Yorkshire Party The Yorkshire Party is a regionalist political party in Yorkshire, a historic county of England. Founded in 2014, it campaigns for the establishment of a devolved Yorkshire Parliament within the United Kingdom, with powers over education, envir ...

. Taylor, who was third on the list, was appointed instead. Taylor was not a candidate for the seat in the 2014 election. She instead contested the Parliamentary constituency of

Morley and Outwood Morley and Outwood was a constituency in West Yorkshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the seat was abolished. Subject to boundary ...

in the 2015 general election, finishing fourth with 1,426 votes (3%).

References

External links

Rebecca Taylor MEP Official Website

Rebecca Taylor MEP – MEP for Yorkshire and the Humber - Liberal Democrats

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Rebecca 1975 births Living people People from Todmorden Alumni of the University of Leeds Alumni of the University of Kent Alumni of King's College London Liberal Democrats (UK) MEPs Liberal Democrats (UK) parliamentary candidates 21st-century women MEPs for England MEPs for England 2009–2014