THE makeup of Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council could be rewritten under new proposals being put forward.

As previously reported in the Gazette, the Local Government Boundary Commission for England has been exploring redrawing the ward boundaries within the borough, which would result in a reduction of six councillors sitting on Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council.

Following an initial consultation, which was launched at the end of last year, the commission has produced a draft of the proposal alterations which would mean changes to all but two of the existing wards in the borough.

The commission’s draft recommendations confirmed the initial proposal that the borough council should have 54 councillors in future, with mergers of wards proposed to facilitate the move.

The recommendations also outline how those councillors should represent 18 three-councillor wards across the borough.

A 10-week consultation will now be held on the proposed draft, with residents urged to give their views on the plan.

Professor Colin Mellors, chair of the commission, said: “We are publishing proposals for a new pattern of wards across Basingstoke and Deane and we are keen to hear what local people think of the recommendations.

“Over the next ten weeks, we are asking local people to tell us if they agree with the proposals or if not, how they can be improved.

“Our review aims to deliver electoral equality for local voters. This means that each councillor represents a similar number of people, so that everyone’s vote in council elections is worth roughly the same, regardless of where you live.

“We also want to ensure that our proposals reflect the interests and identities of local communities across Basingstoke and Deane and that the pattern of wards can help the council deliver effective local government for local people.”

The consultation closes on October 15, with the final recommendation set to be presented in November.

To have a say on the consultation go to consultation.lgbce.org.uk/node/11062.

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LEADER of the Basingstoke Liberal Democrat Party, councillor Gavin James, said his party has never been keen on the idea of three-member wards.

Part of the proposal is that all wards, no matter how small, would all be covered by three councillors.

Cllr James said: “Having 54 councillors means there is going to be an underrepresentation for all the residents.

“It doesn’t really seem like much of a consultation to me, it is more we are being told what is going to happen.”

With Cllr James’ Eastrop ward merging with Grove, the Lib Dem leader believes there are some wards which are suited for one member.

He added: “Most people in Eastrop know me, so it does become difficult when merged with an unfamiliar ward.”

GROUP leader of the Basingstoke Conservative Party, Councillor Simon Bound, said the proposed plan by the commission needs to be able to work for the community.

The initial proposal to reduce the number of councillors was something which was put forward by the Conservatives, and Cllr Bound said residents expect a certain access to their ward councillors.

Cllr Bound said: “The Boundary Commission works off this system of three councillor wards, and in some wards geographically they are a lot bigger.

“However, it is all relevant to the number of people living in those parishes and all the residents expect a certain level of access to their ward councillor.”

With the Conservatives being the leading party on Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council, with 33 seats, and many of the rural wards being amalgamated, Cllr Bound said each ward will work differently.

He added: “I you have got a three councillors covering a large ward there will be cross over in the work they do, but there will also be a lot of communication to make sure their residents are represented properly.

“We are going to see a cross over of urban and rural wards which is something new, and it will be interesting to see how communities who are currently in a one councillor ward, change with these new proposals.”

BASINGSTOKE and Deane Borough Council’s only independent councillor Ian Tilbury has called the proposed draft “undemocratic and unjustified.”

Cllr Tilbury believes combining the rural wards, such as his own of Overton, Laverstoke and Steventon with Whitchurch, is a move to the benefit of the Conservatives to get more safe seats.

He said: “They have put us in a position where we will have to represent far more people.

“They claim it is more representative, but people in Overton have never voted Conservative, but by making the wards larger we could end up with three ward members who are all from Whitchurch and don’t know the issues in Overton. The whole thing is a farce.”