The District of Wansbeck (Electoral Changes) Order 2007

Statutory Instruments

2007 No. 148

local government, england

The District of Wansbeck (Electoral Changes) Order 2007

Made

25th January 2007

Coming into force in accordance with article 1(2)

The Boundary Committee for England(1), under section 15(4)(2) of the Local Government Act 1992(3) (“the 1992 Act”), have conducted a review of the district of Wansbeck and have submitted to the Electoral Commission(4) recommendations dated August 2006.

A period of not less than six weeks has expired since the receipt of those recommendations.

The Electoral Commission have decided to give effect, without modification, to those recommendations.

Accordingly, the Electoral Commission, in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 17(5) and 26(6) of the 1992 Act, make the following Order:

Citation and commencement

1.—(1) This Order may be cited as the District of Wansbeck (Electoral Changes) Order 2007.

(2) This Order comes into force—

(a) for the purpose of proceedings preliminary or relating to any election to be held on the ordinary day of election of councillors in 2007, on the day after that on which it is made;

(b) for all other purposes, on the ordinary day of election of councillors in 2007.

Interpretation

2.  In this Order—

“district” means the district of Wansbeck;

“existing”, in relation to a ward, means the ward as it exists on the date this Order is made;

“map” means the map marked “Map referred to in the District of Wansbeck (Electoral Changes) Order 2007”, of which prints are available for inspection at the principal office of the Electoral Commission;

“ordinary day of election of councillors” has the meaning given by section 37 of the Representation of the People Act 1983(7); and

“registration officer” means an officer appointed for the purpose of, and in accordance with, section 8(8) of the Representation of the People Act 1983.

Wards of the district of Wansbeck

3.—(1) The existing wards of the district(9) shall be abolished.

(2) The district shall be divided into eighteen wards which shall be named as set out in column (1) of the Schedule.

(3) Each ward shall comprise the area designated on the map by reference to the name of the ward and demarcated by red lines.

(4) The number of councillors to be elected for each ward shall be the number specified in respect of the ward in column (2) of the Schedule.

(5) Where a boundary is shown on the map as running along a road, railway line, footway, watercourse or similar geographical feature, it shall be treated as running along the centre line of the feature.

Map

4.  Wansbeck District Council shall make a print of the map available for inspection at its offices by any member of the public at any reasonable time.

Electoral register

5.  The registration officer for the district shall make such rearrangement of, or adaptation of, the register of local government electors as may be necessary for the purposes of, and in consequence of, this Order.

Sealed with the seal of the Electoral Commission on the 25th day of January 2007

Sam Younger

Chairman of the Commission

25th January 2007

Peter Wardle

Chief Executive to the Commission

25th January 2007

article 3

SCHEDULE NAMES OF WARDS AND NUMBERS OF COUNCILLORS

Column (1)	Column (2)
Name of Ward	Number of Councillors
Ashington Central	3
Bedlington Central	3
Bedlington East	3
Bedlington North	2
Bedlington South	2
Bothal North	2
Bothal South	2
Choppington	2
College	3
Guide Post	3
Haydon	3
Hirst	2
Newbiggin East	2
Newbiggin West	2
Park	3
Seaton	3
Sleekburn	3
Stakeford	2

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order makes changes to the electoral arrangements for the district of Wansbeck following recommendations made by the Boundary Committee for England to the Electoral Commission.

The Electoral Commission accepted the Boundary Committee’s recommendations without modification.

The electoral changes apply in respect of local government elections to be held on and after the ordinary day of election of councillors in 2007.

Article 3 abolishes the existing wards of the district and replaces them with 18 new ones. That article, the Schedule and the map also establish the names and areas of the new district wards and the numbers of district councillors for each ward.

Article 5 obliges the Electoral Registration Officer to make any necessary amendments to the electoral register to reflect the new electoral arrangements.

The map defined in article 2 shows the new district wards. It is available at www.boundarycommittee.org.uk/your-area/wansbeck.cfm and, at all reasonable times, at the offices of Wansbeck District Council and at the principal office of the Electoral Commission at Trevelyan House, Great Peter Street, London SW1P 2HW.

(1)

The Boundary Committee for England is a committee of the Electoral Commission, established by the Electoral Commission in accordance with section 14 of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (“the 2000 Act”) (c.41). The Local Government Commission for England (Transfer of Functions) Order 2001 (S.I. 2001/3962) transferred to the Electoral Commission the functions of the Local Government Commission for England.

(2)

This section has been amended by S.I. 2001/3962.

(3)

1992 c.19.

(4)

The Electoral Commission was established by the 2000 Act (c.41). The functions of the Secretary of State, under sections 13 to 15 and 17 of the 1992 Act (c.19), to the extent that they relate to electoral changes within the meaning of that Act, were transferred with modifications to the Electoral Commission on 1st April 2002 (S.I. 2001/3962).

(5)

This section has been amended by S.I. 2001/3962 and also otherwise in ways not relevant to this Order.

(6)

This section has been amended by S.I. 2001/3962.

(7)

1983 c.2, section 37 has been amended by section 18(2) of the Representation of the People Act 1985 (c.50) and section 17 of, and paragraphs 1 and 5 of Schedule 3 to, the Greater London Authority Act l999 (c.29).

(8)

Section 8 has been amended by the Local Government (Wales) Act 1994 (c.19) and the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 (c.39).

(9)

See the District of Wansbeck (Electoral Changes) Order 1998 (S.I. 1998/2342).