Bedfordshire residents asked for views on boundary recommendations for local councils

Posted on May 17, 2010

The independent Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE) is asking people in Bedfordshire to comment on proposed new local electoral arrangements for Bedford Borough and Central Bedfordshire Councils.

A public consultation on the recommendations begins today and will end on 12 July 2010.

The reviews will decide how many councillors should sit on each Council and will also establish new boundaries for local wards. The Commission's draft recommendations, published today, include maps of the proposed new wards that each councillor would represent.The recommendations will be available at council buildings and libraries shortly, and are available online at www.lgbce.org.uk.

Max Caller, Chair of the LGBCE, said: “Having fair electoral boundaries for your council is important. Our reviews aim at ensuring electoral equality, meaning that each councillor should represent a similar number of people.

"The information that people and organisations sent us in our earlier consultations have informed our draft recommendations. Your ward should be a realistic reflection of your community area. We want people to tell us whether the boundaries we've drawn make sense. Rivers, roads and railways make effective boundaries but it's not always that clear cut. We now want people to tell us what they feel the impact of the recommendations will be on their community, whether they think the recommendations can be improved and, if so, how."

The Commission wants to hear as much clear and well-argued evidence as possible in order to develop final recommendations for Bedford Borough and Central Bedfordshire Councils. If you would like to make a submission to the Commission, please write by 12 July 2010 to:

The Local Government Boundary Commission for England
Bedford / Central Bedfordshire Review
Layden House
76-86 Turnmill Street
London
EC1M 5LG

Or email:[email protected]

Further information on electoral reviews and guidance on what sort of information the Commission is looking for should be available at council offices, in local libraries, or on our website at www.lgbce.org.uk

Source: Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE)