CONSTITUENCY BOUNDARIES IN HAMPSHIRE & SOUTHAMPTON - PT 1

20 Nov 2002 10:45 AM

The Commission are to publish revised recommendations on 28 November 2002 for the boundaries of the following parliamentary
constituencies:-

Eastleigh BC
New Forest East CC
New Forest West CC
Winchester CC

and to the name of the following parliamentary constituency:-

Romsey CC

The revised recommendations take account of the recommendations contained in the report submitted to the Commission by the Assistant Commissioner, Mr Roger Ellis QC, who considered the written representations made to the Commission and the views expressed at the recent public inquiry.

The Commission are proposing no further changes to the following constituencies and confirm their provisional recommendations as their final recommendations for:-

Aldershot BC Meon Valley CC
Basingstoke BC North East Hampshire CC
Fareham CC North West Hampshire CC
Gosport BC Southampton, Itchen BC
Havant BC Southampton, Test BC
East Hampshire CC

The Boundary Commission are to publish revised recommendations to the boundaries of four parliamentary constituencies and to the name of one parliamentary constituency in the counties of Hampshire and Southampton on 28 November 2002. The Commission published their provisional recommendations for the area on 14 February 2002, together with their provisional recommendations for Portsmouth. Their decision in respect of Portsmouth is contained in a separate news release, also issued today.

Objections to the proposals for Hampshire and Southampton led to a public inquiry, which was held in Winchester between 18 and 20 June 2002. The Assistant Commissioner who conducted the inquiry has recommended changes to the Commission's proposals. Having considered his report and recommendations, and the evidence submitted, the Commission have decided to adopt in full his proposed changes to the boundaries of four seats, and to the name of one seat, and to revise their proposals accordingly.

Assistant Commissioner's Report

The Assistant Commissioner reported unanimous support for the Commission's proposal for Hampshire and Southampton to be reviewed as one combined area, although Southampton City Council and others expressed regret that Southampton could not be treated separately. No objections were received concerning the allocation of an additional, sixteenth, seat to the combined area.

The Assistant Commissioner reported that there were seven boundary issues raised in the representations and at the inquiry. There were also objections to the name of the Romsey seat and to the designation of the Aldershot and Basingstoke seats. The boundary issues related to:-

the Southampton and Romsey seats;

the Yateley area;

the Whiteley area;

the Eastleigh wards (covering the Chandler's Ford, Hiltingbury, Bishopstoke, and Fair Oak and Horton Heath areas);

the Meon Valley seat (particularly the Cheriton and Bishops Sutton ward, and the East Meon ward);

the New Forest (Boldre and Sway ward); and

the Basingstoke seat.

The Assistant Commissioner's evaluation and recommendations on these issues are detailed below.

The Southampton and Romsey seats

The Assistant Commissioner reported that the provisional recommendation for part of Southampton to be included in a seat with part of Hampshire was not challenged at the inquiry. He agreed with the Commission that the Bassett and Swaythling wards were the most appropriate Southampton wards to include in the Romsey seat and noted that a part of each of these wards is already in the Romsey seat.

The Yateley area

The Assistant Commissioner reported that the Commission's provisional recommendations divided the parish of Yateley between seats with the three Yateley wards (Yateley East, Yateley North and Yateley West) in North East Hampshire CC and the Frogmore and Darby Green ward in Aldershot BC. However, he considered that, to unite the parish in the Aldershot seat, as had been suggested, would produce a large disparity (22,976) between the electorates of the two seats. He did not consider the division of the parish would be a significant disadvantage when compared to the disparity that would result from placing the four wards in the Aldershot seat. He, therefore, recommended the adoption of the Commission's proposals for the area.

The Whiteley area

The Assistant Commissioner reported that the community of Whiteley was currently divided between two wards and two districts (the Sarisbury ward of Fareham Borough, and the Whiteley ward of the City of Winchester) and two seats (Fareham CC and Meon Valley CC). He did not consider there was any value in placing the two wards in one seat or in departing from the Commission's policy of not dividing wards and splitting the Sarisbury ward between seats in order to satisfy the objectors. He considered that the Commission's proposals for the area should be adopted. The Commission noted that responsibility for considering whether the Whiteley area should be included in one ward and in one district, rather than in two wards and two districts as is presently the case, rests with the Boundary Committee for England.

The Eastleigh wards (covering the Chandler's Ford, Hiltingbury, Bishopstoke, and Fair Oak and Horton Heath areas)

The Assistant Commissioner reported that the provisional recommendations and the counter-proposals all transferred the Chandler's Ford East, Chandler's Ford West, Hiltingbury East and Hiltingbury West wards out of the Romsey seat. He accepted that the wards were more suited to inclusion in the Eastleigh seat but considered they could alternatively be included in the Winchester seat. He also considered that the Bishopstoke East, Bishopstoke West, and Fair Oak and Horton Heath wards were also more suited to the Eastleigh seat but that they could, alternatively, be included in the Winchester seat.

On balance, he considered that the counter-proposal to place the Chandler's Ford East, Chandler's Ford West, Hiltingbury East and Hiltingbury West wards in the Winchester seat, and to keep the Bishopstoke East, Bishopstoke West, and Fair Oak and Horton Heath wards in the Eastleigh seat, was preferable. It reflected, on balance, the comparative strengths of the ties and links of the wards with the Eastleigh seat, and it resulted in the transfer of fewer electors between seats than did the Commission's proposals.

The Meon Valley seat (particularly the Cheriton and Bishops Sutton ward, and the East Meon ward)

The Assistant Commissioner reported widespread acceptance for the proposed Meon Valley seat although he noted that a counter-proposal to place the Cheriton and Bishops Sutton ward in the Winchester seat was well supported. He did not consider that the evidence in support of the counter-proposal was strong and rejected it on the basis that, if the counter-proposal for the Eastleigh wards was accepted (as he had recommended), an increased electoral disparity would result. There was also a counter-proposal to place the East Meon ward in the Meon Valley seat instead of in the East Hampshire seat. However, the Assistant Commissioner rejected this proposal, as he considered that parts of the ward had many ties and links with adjacent Petersfield.

The New Forest (Boldre and Sway ward)

The Assistant Commissioner reported widespread and significant support for the counter-proposal to place the Boldre and Sway ward in the New Forest East seat instead of in the New Forest West seat. He had no hesitation in recommending such a change to the provisional recommendations despite noting that 1,222 more electors would be transferred under this option than in the Commission's proposals.

The Basingstoke seat

The Assistant Commissioner considered various counter-proposals for the Basingstoke seat and those adjacent to it. He was satisfied that the fifteen urban wards of the town should form the basis for the Basingstoke seat. He reported that there were three wards (Basing, Upton Grey and The Candovers, and Oakley and North Waltham) adjacent to the urban wards that could be considered for inclusion in the Basingstoke seat.

The electorate of the fifteen urban wards totalled 63,647 and the Assistant Commissioner considered that, if this area alone formed a seat, the disparity with the electorates of neighbouring seats would be too great. He considered which of the three wards was more closely associated with Basingstoke and concluded that the Commission's provisional recommendation to keep the Basing ward in the seat provided the best solution. He also noted that the Commission's proposals resulted in the transfer of fewer electors than the alternatives.

The name of the Romsey seat

The Assistant Commissioner reported that, with just over 30% of the electorate of the Romsey seat being in Southampton, the name "Romsey" was no longer appropriate. He considered that specific reference to "Southampton" should be contained in the name and recommended "Romsey and Southampton North". This name had been submitted in the representations and discussed at the inquiry. The Southampton element of the existing Romsey seat (which also includes part of the Chandler's Ford area) represents nearly 17% of its electorate.

The designation of the Aldershot and Basingstoke seats

The Assistant Commissioner considered the counter-proposals for the Aldershot and Basingstoke seats to be designated as county constituencies. However, he agreed with the Commission's provisional recommendations that they should both be designated as borough constituencies.

The overall effect of the Assistant Commissioner's proposals would be to alter the boundaries of four of the sixteen seats proposed by the Commission. The changes would also reduce the disparity between the electorates of the seats in the combined area of Hampshire and Southampton to 8,571, which is slightly below that proposed by the Commission (8,725). The seat with the highest electorate would be North West Hampshire CC (73,840), as opposed to the Eastleigh BC (74,063) under the provisional recommendations. The seat with the lowest electorate would be New Forest West CC (65,269), as opposed to New Forest East CC (65,338) under the provisional recommendations. The only other alteration to the Commission's provisional recommendations would be to the name of Romsey CC.

Revised Recommendations

In considering the Assistant Commissioner's recommendation as to which Eastleigh Borough wards should be included in the Winchester seat, the Commission accepted that the alternatives were finely balanced. The Assistant Commissioner had reported that Bishopstoke had historical ties with Eastleigh and the Commission noted that Eastleigh Borough Council had submitted a counter-proposal that would place the Bishopstoke East, Bishopstoke West, and Fair Oak and Horton Heath wards in the Eastleigh seat and the Chandler's Ford East, Chandler's Ford West, Hiltingbury East and Hiltingbury West wards in the Winchester seat.

The Commission also noted that the Assistant Commissioner's recommendation would produce a constituency boundary that cut through the residential area between the Chandler's Ford West ward and other parts of Eastleigh Borough that were in the Eastleigh seat. Despite that, and after taking all the evidence into account, the Commission considered that, on balance, the counter-proposal for the area was to be preferred to their provisional recommendations.

In considering the Assistant Commissioner's recommendation to include the New Forest District ward of Boldre and Sway in the New Forest East seat, instead of in the New Forest West seat, the Commission noted that there had been widespread and significant support for such a change. Although under this option 1,222 more electors would be transferred than would be under their provisional recommendations, the Commission accepted that the ties between the Boldre and Sway ward and the New Forest East seat were significant and considered that such a change was justified.

In considering the Assistant Commissioner's recommendation to re-name Romsey CC as Romsey and Southampton North CC, the Commission considered that, with just over 30% of the Romsey seat electorate being in Southampton (compared to nearly 17% of the existing Romsey seat), the name "Romsey" was no longer appropriate. The Commission agreed with the Assistant Commissioner that specific reference to "Southampton" should be contained in the name and that "Romsey and Southampton North", which had been submitted before and during the inquiry, was a more appropriate name.

After considering all the evidence in the written representations and at the local inquiry, the Commission have decided to accept the Assistant Commissioner's recommendations in full. Accordingly, they are publishing revised recommendations to:-

include the four Eastleigh Borough wards of Chandler's Ford East, Chandler's Ford West, Hiltingbury East, and Hiltingbury West in the Winchester seat, instead of in the Eastleigh seat;

include the three Eastleigh Borough wards of Bishopstoke East, Bishopstoke West, and Fair Oak and Horton Heath in the Eastleigh seat, instead of in the Winchester seat;

include the New Forest District ward of Boldre and Sway in the New Forest East seat, instead of in the New Forest West seat; and to re-name Romsey CC as Romsey and Southampton North CC.

The Commission are also announcing final recommendations for the other eleven constituencies in the area.

Composition of Constituencies

No change is proposed to the names or composition of the following eleven provisionally recommended constituencies (2000 electorates in brackets) and no further representations will be considered on them:-

ALDERSHOT BOROUGH CONSTITUENCY (66,499)
BASINGSTOKE BOROUGH CONSTITUENCY (69,987)
EAST HAMPSHIRE COUNTY CONSTITUENCY (67,452)
FAREHAM COUNTY CONSTITUENCY (71,423)
GOSPORT BOROUGH CONSTITUENCY (69,708)
HAVANT BOROUGH CONSTITUENCY (70,138)
MEON VALLEY COUNTY CONSTITUENCY (65,952)
NORTH EAST HAMPSHIRE COUNTY CONSTITUENCY (67,417)
NORTH WEST HAMPSHIRE COUNTY CONSTITUENCY (73,840)
SOUTHAMPTON, ITCHEN BOROUGH CONSTITUENCY (71,142)
SOUTHAMPTON, TEST BOROUGH CONSTITUENCY (72,018)

The composition of the constituencies where boundaries are revised (2000 electorates in brackets) and the names of those seats would be:-

EASTLEIGH BOROUGH CONSTITUENCY (72,715). Fifteen wards of the Borough of Eastleigh:- Bishopstoke East, Bishopstoke West, Botley, Bursledon and Old Netley, Eastleigh Central, Eastleigh North, Eastleigh South, Fair Oak and Horton Heath, Hamble-le-Rice and Butlocks Heath, Hedge End Grange Park, Hedge End St John's, Hedge End Wildern, Netley Abbey, West End North, West End South.

NEW FOREST EAST COUNTY CONSTITUENCY (69,646). Seventeen wards of the District of New Forest:- Ashurst, Copythorne South and Netley Marsh, Boldre and Sway, Bramshaw, Copythorne North and Minstead, Brockenhurst and Forest South East, Butts Ash and Dibden Purlieu, Dibden and Hythe East, Fawley, Blackfield and Langley, Furzedown and Hardley, Holbury and North Blackfield, Hythe West and Langdown, Lyndhurst, Marchwood, Totton Central, Totton East, Totton North, Totton South, Totton West.

NEW FOREST WEST COUNTY CONSTITUENCY (65,269). Seventeen wards of the District of New Forest:- Barton, Bashley, Becton, Bransgore and Burley, Buckland, Downlands and Forest, Fernhill, Fordingbridge, Forest North West, Hordle, Lymington Town, Milford, Milton, Pennington, Ringwood East and Sopley, Ringwood North, Ringwood South.

WINCHESTER COUNTY CONSTITUENCY (70,211). Four wards of the Borough of Eastleigh:- Chandler's Ford East, Chandler's Ford West, Hiltingbury East, Hiltingbury West; fifteen wards of the City of Winchester:- Colden Common and Twyford, Compton and Otterbourne, Itchen Valley, Kings Worthy, Littleton and Harestock, Olivers Battery and Badger Farm, St Barnabas, St Bartholomew, St John and All Saints, St Luke, St Michael, St Paul, Sparsholt, The Alresfords, Wonston and Micheldever.

No change is proposed to the composition of Romsey CC, and no further representations will be considered in respect of its boundaries. Representations, however, will be considered in respect of the revised name:-

ROMSEY AND SOUTHAMPTON NORTH COUNTY CONSTITUENCY (65,461)

Outline maps (please note the Crown Copyright warning below) showing the Commission's proposals are contained within this news release together with a list of all the wards in the area and their 2000 electorates which the Commission are required to use. The letters and numbers on the outline maps relate to the districts and wards in the list.

Publication of Revised Recommendations

The revised recommendations will be published formally in a notice appearing in local newspapers in Hampshire and Southampton on 28 November 2002. Local authorities, MPs, the Political Parties' Headquarters, and others will be sent a copy of the recommendations. The notice will also be published on the Commission's web site at:-

http://www.statistics.gov.uk/pbc/

Places of Inspection

A copy of the revised recommendations and maps illustrating them may be inspected, once the notice has been published in local newspapers on 28 November 2002, at the following places:-

ALDERSHOT Aldershot Library, 109 - 113 High Street, Aldershot ALTON Council Information Office, 7 Cross & Pillory Lane, Alton ANDOVER Council Offices, Beech Hurst, Weyhill Road, Andover BASINGSTOKE Deanes Building, Civic Offices, London Road, Basingstoke BISHOPS WALTHAM Bishops Waltham Library, Bank Street, Bishops Waltham BORDON Council Information Office, The Forest Community Centre, Pinehill Road, Bordon
EASTLEIGH Civic Offices, Leigh Road, Eastleigh
FAREHAM FARNBOROUGH FLEET Civic Offices, Civic Way, Fareham Council Offices, Farnborough Road, Farnborough Civic Offices, Harlington Way, Fleet
GOSPORT Town Hall, High Street, Gosport
HAVANT Civic Offices, Havant
LYMINGTON LYNDHURST NEW ALRESFORD OVERTON Town Hall, Avenue Road, Lymington Appletree Court, Lyndhurst New Alresford Library, 20 Broad Street, New Alresford Overton Library, Community Centre, Winchester Street, Overton
PETERSFIELD Council Offices, Penn Place, Petersfield
RINGWOOD Ringwood Library, Christchurch Road, Ringwood

ROMSEY SOUTHAMPTON Council Offices, Dutton Road, Romsey Civic Centre, Southampton Eastern Branch Library, Bitterne Road East, Southampton Shirley Branch Library, Redcar Street, Southampton TADLEY Tadley Library, Mulfords Hill, Tadley
TOTTON WATERLOOVILLE WINCHESTER Totton Library, Library Road, Totton Council Information Office, Tyfield House, Blendworth Lane, Horndean, Waterlooville City Office, Colebrook Street, Winchester

ENDS PART ONE OF TWO PARTS