Revised proposals for new constituency boundaries

The number of parliamentary constituencies in the UK will fall from 650 to 600 as part of the current boundary review. Revised proposals for 502 new constituencies in England and 16 new constituencies in Northern Ireland were published on 16 October 2012, following on from the publication of initial proposals for new constituency boundaries in September 2011. The Boundary Commission for Scotland published revised proposals for 52 new Westminster parliamentary constituencies on 13 September 2012.

This note looks at how the revised proposals from the Boundary Commissions differ from the initial proposals published last year and the extent to which proposed constituencies can be identified with existing seats. Revised proposals for constituency boundaries in Wales are due to be published on 24 October 2012.

The Boundary Commissions for England, Scotland and Northern Ireland are currently carrying out a public consultation on the revised proposals. The consultation on the Boundary Commission for Scotland’s proposals runs until 7 November 2012. The consultations on the revised proposals for England and Northern Ireland close on 10 December 2012.