Boundary Review - Have your say!

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*** Have your say on rural representation - deadline is 4th April! ***

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The Boundary Commission for England is redrawing the boundaries of Parliamentary constituencies to make sure that each vote is approximately equal across the country. As part of this they consider moving some villages and towns from their existing constituency to a new one.

Under the Boundary Commission’s proposals many existing rural towns and villages will be ejected from the current Arundel constituency and placed into new parliamentary constituencies dominated by towns – notably along the south coast – ignoring the rural nature of the communities.

Many towns and villages end up separated from those with which they share close geographic or community ties – Amberley and Houghton for example, or Pulborough and Fittleworth. Some end up in a new constituency centred on the urban area of Shoreham which stretches up to the border of Brighton & Hove.  Many residents currently in Arundel & South Downs have told me that they are concerned that the issues that concern them –  such as over-development, anti-social motorbikes, access to faster broadband and rural policing – may not be a priority in a constituency with a different composition.

You can find where the Boundary Commission propose your community ends up by clicking here.

It is not too late to stop this. The Boundary Commission proposals were just the start and residents are now specifically invited to submit comments. There is a strong track record of proposals changing but only when the community itself speaks out.

 

How can I comment?    ***2nd consultation stage now open!***

The Boundary Commission actively welcome comments from residents and civic groups on their proposals. It is a non-party political process and comments should be on objective grounds such as ties between local communities (history, shared schools, diocese, cultural facilities), geographic factors (such as being in the same river valley, the South Downs National Park, on the same railway line or the local road network) or issues in common (anti-social motorcycling, rural crime, access to broadband etc)

Send an email to the Boundary Commission for England at information@boundarycommissionengland.gov.uk copying andrew@griffithmp.com expressing your concern about these proposals, and support for counterproposals to reunite rural West Sussex.

Counterproposals and comments in support of rural representation that you may wish to reference

You can find my counterproposal to reunite rural West Sussex, preventing the division of local communities, here - it's reference is BCE-85406. 

You can also view other political parties' responses on the case for rural representation below, highlighting that this campaign to stop the division of West Sussex is non-political:

You can also support these submissions by local groups and Parish Councils which express concern about the loss of rural representation:

 

 

 

You may wish to use the materials below for reference in your comments. 

Link to the overall Boundary Commission for England proposals

Map of the new Shoreham constituency as proposed by the Boundary Commission

Map of the Arundel & Littlehampton constituency as proposed by the Boundary Commission

 

The consultation process is non-political and seeks comments from residents which are focussed upon local geography (such as the South Downs, the Arun river or the Arun Valley Railway line), the links between neighbouring communities or simply the sheer degree of change imposed upon the electorate (the current constituency of Arundel & South Downs ends up in six different places).

  • Early 2022: Publish responses to initial proposals and conduct six-week ‘secondary consultation’, including between two and five public hearings in each region;
  • Late 2022: Publish revised proposals and conduct four-week written consultation;
  • June 2023: Submit and publish final report and recommendations.