Key Facts

• The Bill aims to deliver updated and equal parliamentary boundaries based on current demographics.
• The last implemented update of Westminster constituencies was based on electoral data from the early 2000s.
• There are 1.2 million extra people on the registers across all four nations since the last boundary review.
• The Parliamentary Constituencies Bill aims to update constituency boundaries.
• An eight-year boundary review cycle is proposed in the Bill.
• The next boundary review timetable is slightly shortened by three months to two years and seven months.
• The Bill improves the timing of public hearings during boundary reviews.
• Boundary Commissions can now consider prospective local government boundaries formalised in legislation but not yet used in an election.
• Orders in Council will automatically implement proposed constituencies without parliamentary debate or approval.
• The permitted tolerance in electoral quota has been in place since 2011.
• The current law allows four protected constituencies to diverge from the quota due to geographical circumstances.
• Boundary commissions use a 10% tolerance range for constituency electorates.
• Over 50% of proposals for constituencies in England were adjusted based on feedback during the most recent boundary review.
• The Parliamentary Constituencies Bill aims to establish 650 equal and updated constituencies.
• Two previous boundary reviews were shelved, costing £7 million for the 2013 review and an estimated £8 million for the 2018 review.
• Winterton welcomes the Government's decision to retain 650 MPs instead of reducing them to 600.
• The December 2019 register saw a spike in voter registration with over 1 million people registering.
• Electoral returning officers are concerned about impacts of coronavirus on the December 2020 registers.
• Using December 2020 data could delay boundary commissioners' work until May 2021.
• The Bill gives boundary commissioners more flexibility to use local government and ward boundaries.
• Labour welcomes the move to hold reviews every eight years.
• Some changes proposed before the 1997 election were beneficial for certain MPs but detrimental to others.
• The Isle of Wight argument resulted in two proposed seats previously.
• The Bill proposes reviewing constituency boundaries.
• Current constituencies have been unchanged since the speaker was 15 years old.
• Some Scottish constituencies face a reduction of two or three seats based on proposed electoral quotas.
• Rural Scotland faces significant travel challenges for MPs to conduct duties.
• The Scottish Parliament has both constituency and regional Members.
• Scotland would likely lose two or three seats based on current electoral quotas.
• Clause 7 sets an enumeration date of December 2020 which may be outdated due to upcoming elections.
• Clause 2(3) removes parliamentary procedure for boundary changes, transferring power to the Cabinet Office.
• Moray's constituency has an electorate of over 71,000.
• The last boundary change was made two decades ago when the speaker could not vote.
• The Government proposes reviewing boundaries every eight years.
• The Bill proposes a variance limit of plus/minus 5% for constituency sizes.
• Concerns are raised about splitting long-established communities and eroding local identities due to narrow margin limits.
• There is a push for parliamentary oversight over the boundary commissions' changes.
• Use of electoral register from 1 December 2020 may lead to inaccuracies due to pandemic impacts, suggesting use of 2019 data instead.
• The speaking time is reduced to four minutes after the next speaker.
• The Bill aims to remove parliamentary scrutiny from boundary reviews.
• Winterton is concerned that removing scrutiny could lead to detrimental changes.
• London, which has seen population growth but low voter registration, may see a reduction in seats.
• The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe recommends a variance of 10%.
• Building constituencies on wards leads to splitting communities due to ward sizes being too large.
• In Leeds, eight constituencies exist with one seat covering only a third of the geographical area.
• The Bill aims to resolve discrepancies in constituency sizes ranging from half as many voters in one town compared to another.
• The difference between the smallest and largest constituencies is about the size of Leeds city (675,000 people).
• A 10% electoral tolerance would give more flexibility to keep communities together within coherent boundaries.
• The Conservative party manifesto pledged updated equal parliamentary boundaries.
• The Bill maintains 650 seats instead of reducing to 600.
• Historical and community ties are important in boundary reviews.
• The electoral register being considered is from 20 years ago.
• The Bill will create a new political map for the UK that will last through at least the next two general elections.
• Using smaller building blocks like polling districts can help in creating constituencies based on actual towns and communities.
• The Bill proposes reverting to 650 Members of Parliament.
• There are concerns about strict adherence to numbers over community identity.
• Regional boundaries affect constituency formation.
• The proposals will likely see a reduction to about 31 seats in Wales.
• The Electoral Reform Society Cymru is critical of the proposals.
• The Senedd has faced a decade of cuts due to the current UK Government and coalition before.
• The speaker supports increasing the number of parliamentary constituencies to 650.
• Montgomeryshire, represented by the MP, is one of the largest geographical constituencies with a small electorate.
• The Electoral Commission estimates up to 9 million potential electors are not on the electoral roll.
• The Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986 provides sparse directions to the Boundary Commission.
• Basingstoke's population increased from 13,000 in the 1940s to 83,000 currently.
• New Office for National Statistics data estimates six new constituencies will be generated in the south-east region of the UK.
• The Parliamentary Constituencies Bill aims to provide clarity on national and local levels.
• One person one vote is important but so is equality in representation.
• There are significant variations in constituency sizes within Derbyshire, ranging from a deficit of 10,000 people to a surplus of nearly 9,000 people compared to the speaker's own constituency.
• The Bill risks putting further strain on the integrity of the Union by reducing the number of parliamentary constituencies in devolved nations while increasing English seats.
• The Government refused to compromise on a 5% electoral tolerance, which experts argue is restrictive and damaging.
• Previous reviews based on an arbitrary number of 600 constituencies cost taxpayers £700 million.
• Parliamentary Constituencies Bill aims to update and equalise parliamentary boundaries.
• The Bill ensures that every vote counts equally on the basis of 650 constituencies.
• There is a plus or minus 5% tolerance level for constituency sizes, effectively a total of 10% variation.
• The two specific protected seats are small Scottish seats.
• The government's programme aims to ensure equal weight for every vote across the United Kingdom.
• Eight years is deemed the right amount of time for communities to be stable and for MPs to develop connections with their constituencies.
• The amendment was negatived in a division, with 137 Ayes and 265 Noes.