How to respond

The Boundary Commission for England (BCE) published on 13 September 2016 initial proposals for new constituencies in England. Members of the public were invited to have their say by giving the Commission their views on these proposals during a 12-week consultation period either via the consultation website or in person at public hearings being held in every region.

The information below applied to this initial consultation.  A second consultation is now underway until March 27, to receive comments on the published responses to the original consultation (more here).

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(For reference only - historical information) 

When can I comment on the initial proposals?
The consultation on the initial proposals will run for 12 weeks between September and December 2016, following the publication of initial proposals in September. All comments from this consultation will be published in early 2017 as part of the secondary consultation.

How can I comment on the initial proposals?

• If you would like to respond in writing, you can submit a letter to: The Boundary Commission for England, 35 Great Smith Street, London, SW1P 3BQ. 
• You can have your say via the consultation website.
• You can also provide your comments by attending a public hearing, which will be held across England, and making an oral representation there. Equal consideration will be given to all representations. Individuals wishing to make an oral presentation at one of the hearings are encouraged to book in advance with the BCE. Details of how to book a speaking slot at a public hearing will be published alongside the initial proposals. At each ‘lead’ hearing – the first in the region – the five political parties with English seats in the UK Parliament will be offered a longer speaking slot at the start of the hearing to set out their proposals for the whole region. This longer speaking slot allows the political parties to address the whole region – it should be made clear that the BCE places no more weight on the representations from the political parties than from anyone else. The BCE makes it clear that the duration of speaking slots is likely to be very limited, so presentations will need to be clear, concise and focused. Those intending to speak at a public hearing will also need to be reasonably flexible about when exactly they are asked to start and finish their presentation. [more here - scroll to para 64ff]

(For reference only - historical information) 

London Hearings

(full list of public hearings, location details and booking links here.)

• 17-18 October BCE - Public Hearing at Westminster. Aldersgate Room, Central Hall, Westminster, Storey's Gate Westminster.
• 20-21 October BCE - Public Hearing at Bromley. Chapel, United Reform Church Hall, 20 Widmore Road, Bromley
• 24-25 October BCE - Public Hearing at Harrow. Main Hall, Kenton Hall, Woodcock Hill, Harrow. 
• 27-28 October BCE - Public Hearing at Kingston. Council Chambers, Main Guildhall, High Street, Kingston-Upon-Thames. 
• 30 October - 1 November BCE -Public Hearing at Romford. Havering Town Hall, Main Road, Romford

(For reference only - historical information)
Note on the public hearings

The BCE attaches just as much significance to representations made in writing and through its website as to those made orally at public hearings – the content of the representation is more important than the form it takes. There needs to be careful management of the conduct of the hearings, since they are strictly limited by statute to last for no more than two days each. However, if there is not time for someone who wishes to speak to say to the BCE everything they would like to, representations can still be made in writing within the 12-week consultation period. 

Those who give their views – whether orally or in writing – are requested to say whether they approve of, or object to, the BCE’s proposals. In particular, objectors are advised to say what they propose in place of the BCE’s proposals. An objection accompanied by a viable counter-proposal is likely to carry more weight than a simple statement of objection. In this respect – and particularly in light of the importance of Rule 2 (statutory electorate range) – a counter-proposal setting out the composition of each constituency in an area will generally be viewed as more persuasive than a proposal for the composition of only one constituency which does not address any knock-on effects on the electorate figures of other constituencies. 

A public hearing is intended to provide an opportunity for people to make representations about any of the BCE’s initial proposals for that region and to present any counter-proposals. Unlike the local inquiries of the past, a public hearing under the new statutory scheme is not intended to focus to any significant degree on comments about any counter-proposals that may be put forward by others, as this can be done in the secondary consultation period. 

Presentations at each public hearing are likely to focus on proposals for the area closest to the location of the hearing, but this does not preclude giving a presentation that relates to any part of the region in which the hearing is located. However, a representation should not be made that relates wholly to another region. 

Each hearing is chaired by an independent Assistant Commissioner selected by the BCE, who controls proceedings and may ask – or allow to be asked – questions of an individual giving a presentation. Questions should generally be asked through the Chair and should ordinarily be seeking clarification rather than trying to ‘cross-examine’ the speaker on their views.

It will be for the Assistant Commissioner chairing the public hearing to decide when to call on speakers and the amount of time to be allocated to them. To aid the Assistant Commissioner in this task, it will be helpful if a synopsis or outline of the points the speaker wishes to make can be provided in advance. Guidance on how and when to do this will be published alongside the initial proposals. 

The BCE encourages the use of visual aids during the making of oral representations at public hearings. The BCE will have a laptop and projector available at each hearing to provide for an electronic presentation using MS Office software (for example PowerPoint) or Google Apps (for example Google Slides). The BCE will also seek to facilitate the use of other visual aids as far as reasonably practical, where given sufficient notice. 

Each public hearing will have a record taken of all the representations made, and any visual aids used at a presentation will be attached to that record on publication at the secondary consultation period.

(For reference only - historical information) 

What will BCE do with my comments?
All comments from the initial consultation will be published on the consultation platform in early 2017. Once a consultation on these has taken place, comments from both consultations will be taken into consideration for a second set of boundary proposals.