The Returning Officers (Parliamentary Constituencies) (England) Order 2007

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.—(1) This Order may be cited as the Returning Officers (Parliamentary Constituencies) (England) Order 2007.

(2) This Order comes into force—

(a) for the purposes of proceedings preliminary or relating to a parliamentary election to be held after the issue of a proclamation by Her Majesty summoning a new Parliament, on 5th October 2007; and

(b) for all other purposes, on the issue of a proclamation by Her Majesty summoning a new Parliament.

(3) References to constituencies in this Order are references to those constituencies in England constituted by an Order in Council made under section 4 of the Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986(1).

Revocations

2.  Subject to article 1(2), the following Orders are revoked—

(a) the Returning Officers (Parliamentary Constituencies) (England) Order 1995(2);

(b) the Returning Officers (Parliamentary Constituencies) (England) (Amendment) Order 1996(3);

(c) the Returning Officers (Parliamentary Constituencies) (England) (Amendment) Order 1997(4); and

(d) the Returning Officers (Parliamentary Constituencies) (England) (Amendment) Order 1999(5).

Designation of returning officers for borough constituencies

3.  In the case of a borough constituency listed in the left-hand column of Schedule 1 to this Order (being a constituency which is not coterminous with or wholly contained in a district), the returning officer for a parliamentary election shall be the chairman of the council of the district listed in the right-hand column of that Schedule opposite to the name of the constituency.

Designation of returning officers for London borough constituencies

4.  In the case of a borough constituency listed in the left hand column of Schedule 2 to this Order (being a constituency which is situated partly in one London borough and partly in another), the returning officer for a parliamentary election shall be the mayor of the London borough listed in the right-hand column of that Schedule opposite to the name of the constituency.

5.—(1) Where a London borough council are operating executive arrangements which involve a mayor and cabinet executive or a mayor and council manager executive, article 4 shall have effect as if for the expression “mayor of a London borough” there were substituted “chairman of a London borough”.

(2) In this article, “executive arrangements”, “mayor and cabinet executive” and “mayor and council manager executive” have the same meaning as in Part 2 of the Local Government Act 2000(6).

Designation of returning officers for county constituencies

6.  In the case of a county constituency listed in the left-hand column of Schedule 3 to this Order (being a constituency which is not coterminous with or wholly contained in a county, as defined by section 38 of the Sheriffs Act 1887(7)), the returning officer for a parliamentary election shall be the chairman of the council of the district listed in the right-hand column of that Schedule opposite to the name of the constituency.

Designation of acting returning officers at parliamentary elections

7.  In the case of a county constituency listed in the left-hand column of Schedule 4 to this Order, the duties of the returning officer for a parliamentary election shall be discharged, as acting returning officer, by the registration officer appointed by the council of the district listed in the right-hand column of that Schedule opposite to the name of the constituency.

Jack Straw

One of Her Majesty’s Principal Secretaries of State

Ministry of Justice

3rd October 2007