HL Deb 01 February 1993 vol 542 cc11-4

3.8 p.m.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Northern Ireland Office (The Earl of Arran) rose to move, That the draft order laid before the House on 15th December be approved [16th Report from the Joint Committee].

The noble Earl said: My Lords, the purpose of this draft order is to give effect to the recommendations contained in the report by the District Electoral Areas Commissioner, which my right honourable friend the Secretary of State laid before Parliament on 10th December last year. The commissioner, Dr. Maurice Hayes, was appointed on 7th July 1992 to make recommendations for the grouping together of local government wards in Northern Ireland into district electoral areas. As noble Lords are aware, since 1973 local government elections in the Province have been held under the single transferable vote system of proportional representation in multi-member constituencies. The constituencies used for local government purposes are called district electoral areas.

It may assist the House if I describe very briefly the background to this draft order. At present, the composition of district electoral areas in Northern Ireland is as set down in the District Electoral Areas (Northern Ireland) Order 1985. The review which has led to this draft order followed on from an earlier review. That considered the number, boundaries and names of local government districts in Northern Ireland and the number, boundaries and names of the wards into which each district is divided.

The District Electoral Areas Commissioner was subsequently appointed to recommend the grouping of wards into electoral areas, in accordance with rules in Schedule 3 to the District Electoral Areas Commissioner (Northern Ireland) Order 1984. The revised structure of district electoral areas embodied in the draft order is the final outcome of this process. The process included the publication of provisional recommendations for public comment. Where necessary, public inquiries were held. In a number of cases, the commissioner amended his recommendations as a result of this consultation.

It is important that this draft order should come into force at the earliest opportunity so that all those engaged in the forthcoming district council elections in Northern Ireland have sufficient time to make their necessary preparations. I commend the order to your Lordships, and I beg to move.

Moved, That the draft order laid before the House on 15th December be approved [16th Report from the Joint Committee]. —(The Earl of Arran.)

Lord Prys-Davies

My Lords, I thank the Minister for explaining the background to this order and the inquiries which preceded it. I thank him also for his explanation of its main provisions. The provisions group together new wards—580, I believe—which were constituted under an earlier order into electoral districts for the purpose of local government elections in those districts.

I should like to pay a generous and warranted tribute to the commissioner, Dr. Maurice Hayes. We all know of Dr. Hayes' outstanding contribution to public life in Northern Ireland. He brought integrity, sensitivity and immense experience to his task as commissioner.

Obviously, we do not have any detailed knowledge of Northern Ireland that would enable us to make any detailed or worthwhile comments on the proposals contained in the order. However, I can see that it rightly takes account of some significant population shifts. I have read elsewhere that occasionally a ward has disappeared. That may lead to a sense of loss or even resentment in some quarters. On the other hand, I am also told that occasionally a ward has been reinstated as a basic local government unit. I am sure that that will hearten local people with civic pride. Reading the report, I had the feeling that there had been some trade-offs between neat and exact arithmetical equity and valid considerations of other kinds. That is what one would expect in an enlightened report.

Perhaps I may be allowed to express pleasure that, notwithstanding political campaigns in support of changes in Derry, there has been no radical change in the boundaries of or within that historic city. Like others who are reasonably familiar with Northern Ireland, I believe that Derry Council has established an enlightened, fair and honourable pattern for its governance which could be a model for other local authorities. Thus, in Derry the principle of proportionality applies to committee membership and to the distribution of committee chairs. That principle is also reflected in the council's nominations for membership of external bodies. It seems to me that the principles and practice that are applied in the governance of Derry point to the way ahead.

Finally, in discharging his duties the commissioner was applying ground rules and having regard to general principles which were determined by Parliament. In the result, the proposals contained in the order should be consistent with at least two main principles which are important in the context of Northern Ireland. First, they should reflect the reality of existing community identities in the various parts of Northern Ireland. Secondly, they should ensure that different sections of the community are assured of fair representation in the governance of their own community. It is of immense importance that those two principles are reflected in the proposals contained in the order and I feel sure that the Minister will confirm that they are.

Accordingly, it gives me great pleasure to approve the order and, at the same time, to express the hope that it will be a vitalising force in local government in Northern Ireland.

Lord Harris of Greenwich

My Lords, we, too, are broadly in agreement with this order. The single transferable vote system in Northern Ireland has proved valuable in ensuring that all shades of opinion are adequately represented given the situation in Northern Ireland. Indeed, it is almost certain that if we had had similar arrangements in the rest of the United Kingdom some of the problems that we have encountered in local government in England and Wales would not have arisen.

However, there are a few problems associated with the order which I should like to mention. As I understand it, the law on this matter was one of the final acts of the former Northern Ireland department which initially assumed that local authorities would be divided into single-member wards based on the first-past-the-post system. Only after intervention by Westminster was proportional representation introduced. Looking back over the past 20 years or so, I do not think that many of us have any doubt that the Westminster Parliament was absolutely right to make that decision.

As I understand it, every 10 years the Boundary Commissioner first redraws the boundaries of the 560-odd wards before joining them in groups of five to seven to form 100-odd district electoral areas for the single transferable vote system. That procedure was, I think, the only way possible in 1972 but it should be looked at again now for a number of reasons.

First, the present arrangements are undoubtedly time-consuming since the single-member wards have to be as nearly equal as possible, despite the fact that they will he stuck together to form district electoral areas, or DEAs. As a result, many minor changes have to be made to balance the number of electors between adjacent wards even though the two wards will be in the same DEA. That requires full consultation, including public hearings, to consider all the issues. Because of minor boundary changes, electors may have to change polling place every two or three elections. The shape of both the DEAs and the wards can be extremely peculiar and they do not always represent a natural community. As I understand it, to give just one illustration, in Ballymena, South, the rural ward of Kells has been placed rather awkwardly with a number of urban wards.

A number of changes could be made to make the arrangements rather more satisfactory. First, there should be a boundary commission to determine the lowest tier—that is, the equivalent of the present ward system. That could be a one-off activity, changing only when a locality changes significantly as a result of, for example, a significant housing development. These areas would be the equivalent of parishes in Great Britain, but would not have any representational functions—at least, not at this stage.

Next, the regular task of the boundary review, which would take place every 10 years or so, would consist simply of confirming the great majority of parishes and their grouping into electoral areas. If an area had lost population, it would normally have reduced representation rather than a boundary change. On the other hand, an increase in population would lead to more councillors.

There should be greater toleration on the question of the number of councillors allowed per electoral area. Although five to seven is probably ideal, in my view four to nine should be accepted if the circumstances are appropriate. I understand that the Government are aware of some of these shortcomings. I hope that they will look at this question between now and the next occasion when this issue comes before Parliament to see whether such changes should be made.

The Earl of Arran

My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lords, Lord Prys-Davies and Lord Harris of Greenwich, for the careful consideration they have given to this draft order. I should like also to take the opportunity once more to place on record the Government's appreciation of the thorough and expert way in which Dr. Maurice Hayes has discharged his task. He has brought to bear his deep knowledge of the subject gained during his service as the Local Government Boundaries Commissioner in Northern Ireland, independence of mind, impartiality and soundness of judgment. I am sure that your Lordships will join me in recording our gratitude for a job well done and in extending thanks to the four assistant commissioners who helped Dr. Hayes, and to his staff.

The noble Lord, Lord Prys-Davies, mentioned 580 wards. With respect, I advise him that it is 582 wards. I am sure that he realises that the grouping of wards into electoral areas can be far from straightforward. I accept that it can give rise to strong local feelings. In some cases it may be difficult, if not impossible, to reach a solution that satisfies the genuine concerns of interested parties. I am sure that the noble Lord, Lord Prys-Davies, will accept that any proposed pattern of electoral boundaries offers scope for arguing that some alternative scheme is possible.

I do not have to persuade your Lordships' House of the importance to Northern Ireland of fair elections, as the noble Lord, Lord Prys-Davies, said, producing elected local institutions which are truly representative of the communities that they administer and serve. We are confident that the framework of district electoral areas which the commissioner has devised provides the best possible basis for such elections.

I listened with care and interest to what the noble Lord, Lord Harris of Greenwich, said about the possible consolidation of the procedure. I am sure that he will agree that careful consideration and consultation will be needed before the present two-stage process for drawing up district ward and electoral area boundaries could be changed. My right honourable friend the Secretary of State has given an undertaking to review the procedures at an early opportunity. With those comments, I commend the order to your Lordships' House.

On Question, Motion agreed to.