Wiltshire Council - election quango publishes proposals

11.44.00am BST (GMT +0100) Tue 1st Jul 2008

Wiltshire Tory leader Jane Scott and chief exec Keith Robinson display their empire

The Boundary Committee for England has published its draft recommendations for new electoral arrangements in Wiltshire. A consultation process, lasting until 25 August, has now begun.

The Boundary Committee's draft recommendations propose the new Wiltshire Council (WC) should consist of 98 councillors. The aim is for the new arrangements to be in place for elections in May 2009.

The review, which began in February 2008, is being carried out to ensure the new WC, which takes on all local government functions for Wiltshire in April 2009, has appropriate electoral arrangements.

Max Caller, Chair of the Boundary Committee, said: "Our recommendations take into account the interests and identities of communities across Wiltshire while providing for 'electoral equality'. That means all councillors across Wiltshire representing approximately the same number of electors. I urge anyone wishing to submit their views at this stage to let the Boundary Committee know what they feel the impact of the recommendations will be on their community and if they think the scheme can be improved."

The Committee wants to hear as much clear and well-argued evidence as possible in order to develop final recommendations for WC. If you would like to make a submission to the Boundary Committee, please write to:

The Electoral Review of Wiltshire, The Boundary Committee, Trevelyan House, 30 Great Peter Street, London SW1P 2HW

See http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/draft-recommendations.pdf for the full document.