Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011

12Boundary Commission proposals: publicity and consultation

(1)For section 5 of the 1986 Act (notices) there is substituted—

“5Publicity and consultation

(1)Once a Boundary Commission have decided what constituencies they propose to recommend in a report under section 3(1)(a) above—

(a)the Commission shall take such steps as they think fit to inform people in each of the proposed constituencies—

(i)what the proposals are,

(ii)that a copy of the proposals is open to inspection at a specified place within the proposed constituency, and

(iii)that written representations with respect to the proposals may be made to the Commission during a specified period of 12 weeks (“the initial consultation period”);

(b)the Commission shall cause public hearings to be held during the period beginning with the fifth week of the initial consultation period and ending with the tenth week of it.

(2)Subsection (1)(a)(ii) above does not apply to a constituency with respect to which no alteration is proposed.

(3)Schedule 2A to this Act, which makes further provision about public hearings under subsection (1)(b) above, has effect.

(4)After the end of the initial consultation period the Commission—

(a)shall publish, in such manner as they think fit, representations made as mentioned in subsection (1)(a) above and records of public hearings held under subsection (1)(b) above;

(b)shall take such steps as they think fit to inform people in the proposed constituencies that further written representations with respect to the things published under paragraph (a) above may be made to the Commission during a specified period of four weeks (“the secondary consultation period”).

(5)If after the end of the secondary consultation period the Commission are minded to revise their original proposals so as to recommend different constituencies, they shall take such steps as they see fit to inform people in each of those revised proposed constituencies—

(a)what the revised proposals are,

(b)that a copy of the revised proposals is open to inspection at a specified place within the revised proposed constituency, and

(c)that written representations with respect to the revised proposals may be made to the Commission during a specified period of eight weeks.

(6)Subsection (5) above does not apply to any proposals to make further revisions.

(7)Steps taken under subsection (4) or (5) above need not be of the same kind as those taken under subsection (1) above.

(8)A Boundary Commission shall take into consideration—

(a)written representations duly made to them as mentioned in subsection (1)(a), (4)(b) or (5)(c) above, and

(b)representations made at public hearings under subsection (1)(b) above.

(9)Except as provided by this section and Schedule 2A to this Act, a Boundary Commission shall not cause any public hearing or inquiry to be held for the purposes of a report under this Act.

(10)Where a Boundary Commission publish—

(a)general information about how they propose to carry out their functions (including, in the case of the Boundary Commission for England, information about the extent (if any) to which they propose to take into account the boundaries mentioned in rule 5(2) of Schedule 2 to this Act), or

(b)anything else to which subsection (1), (4) or (5) above does not apply,

it is for the Commission to determine whether to invite representations and, if they decide to do so, the procedure that is to apply.”

(2)After Schedule 2 to the 1986 Act there is inserted the Schedule set out in Schedule 11 to this Act.

(3)Section 6 of the 1986 Act (local inquiries) is repealed.