Pippa Heylings

Pippa Heylings
Official portrait, 2024
Member of Parliament
for South Cambridgeshire
Assumed office
4 July 2024
Preceded byAnthony Browne
Majority10,641 (19.0%)
Liberal Democrat Spokesperson on Energy Security and Net Zero
Assumed office
18 September 2024
LeaderEd Davey
Preceded byWera Hobhouse
Member of South Cambridgeshire District Council for Histon and Impington
In office
8 May 2018 – 5 September 2024
Personal details
BornPhillippa Frances Heylings
PartyLiberal Democrats
Rhodes University

Phillippa Frances Heylings,[2] known as Pippa Heylings, is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for South Cambridgeshire since 2024. A member of the Liberal Democrats, she previously represented Histon and Impington on the South Cambridgeshire District Council from 2018 to 2024.[3]

Early life

Heylings was born in Kingston upon Hull,[1] her mother a nurse and her father a GP, and grew up with three brothers. In 1997, Heylings graduated from Rhodes University in South Africa with a master's degree in environmental education.[4] She unsuccessfully contested the seat of South East Cambridgeshire in the 2019 general election.[5]

Parliamentary career

Heylings was elected as MP for South Cambridgeshire at the 2024 general election. She won 25,704 votes (46.8%), with a majority of 10,641 over the second-placed Conservative candidate. There were six candidates and a turnout of 71%.[6] Following the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the constituency's boundaries had changed, so that the 2024 seat was made up of parts of the previous South Cambridgeshire constituency (67.4% by area and 72.2% by population of the new seat), South East Cambridgeshire (31.9% by area and 18.8% by population) and Cambridge (0.7% by area and 9.0% by population).[7] The notional 2019 result for the new seat was a narrow Conservative win over Liberal Democrat (43.5% to 41.0%),[8] and Heylings's result in the new seat was described as a Liberal Democrat gain from the Conservatives.[6]

She gave her maiden speech on 26 July 2024,[9] and resigned her seat on the South Cambridgeshire District Council a few months later. She was later appointed as the Liberal Democrat spokesperson for energy security and net zero in September 2024.[10]

In November 2024, Heylings voted in favour of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, which proposes to legalise assisted suicide, citing her reasons on her website.[11]

On 15 September 2025, she left the Environmental Audit Select Committee and was replaced by Roz Savage.[12]

Personal life

Heylings moved to Impington in the South Cambridgeshire District in 2012.[13][14]

References

  1. ^ a b Fridriksson, Thordis (31 January 2022). "The Evening Autobiography – Pippa Heylings". BBC Radio Cambridgeshire. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  2. ^ Heylings, Phillippa Frances. "Professional development in environmental education in Zanzibar, Tanzania: distances encountered in a semi-distance learning course". Connecting-Africa. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  3. ^ "South Cambridgeshire MP Pippa Heylings stands down as district councillor". Cambridge Independent. 5 September 2024. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  4. ^ "Pippa Heylings". University of Cambridge: Centre for Science and Policy. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  5. ^ "Cambridgeshire South East parliamentary constituency - Election 2019 - BBC News". Retrieved 16 September 2025.
  6. ^ a b "South Cambridgeshire - General election results 2024". BBC News. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  7. ^ "South Cambridgeshire (31 May 2024 - ) - overlaps". UK Parliament election results. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  8. ^ "Notional election for the constituency of South Cambridgeshire on 12 December 2019". UK Parliament election results. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  9. ^ "Pippa Heylings MP gives her maiden speech in Parliament". Retrieved 20 December 2024.
  10. ^ "Pippa becomes Liberal Democrat Energy Security and Net Zero Spokesperson". Retrieved 20 December 2024.
  11. ^ "Terminally ill adults (End of Life) Bill: Why I Voted For This Bill)". Retrieved 20 December 2024.
  12. ^ "Environmental Audit Committee - Hansard - UK Parliament". hansard.parliament.uk. 15 September 2025. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
  13. ^ "About Pippa Heylings". South Cambridgeshire Liberal Democrats. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  14. ^ "Councillor details – Cllr Pippa Heylings". scambs.moderngov.co.uk. 5 July 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  • Profile on OpenSanctions, an open database of sanctions and persons of interest