Rebecca Elizabeth Taylor (born 10 August 1975) is a British health researcher and Liberal Democrat politician, who was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Yorkshire and the Humber from 2012 to 2014.

Early life and education

Taylor was born in Todmorden, a market town in the Upper Calder Valley in

Calderdale Calderdale is a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, England, whose population in 2020 was 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 u ...

, West Yorkshire. Her father, Michael Taylor, was the leader of the Liberal Democrat group on Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council 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 and Management Studies (1997) from the University of Leeds, an MA in International Relations (2001) from the University of Kent. 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 research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

Political career

Taylor contested the European Parliament constituency of Yorkshire and the Humber 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. Taylor then stood for election to the Parliamentary constituency of Rotherham 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. 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 is a List of United Kingdom Parliament constituencies, constituency represented in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, UK Parliament since 2015 by Andrea Jenk ...

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