§ Mr. LintonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he proposes next to implement the periodic electoral review recommendations which he has received from the Local Government Commission for England; what is his policy for implementing future reviews; and if he will make a statement. [76016]
§ Ms ArmstrongWhere we accept the LGC periodic electoral review recommendations our intention is to implement them as soon as practicable on a normal election day whilst ensuring that no council holds whole council elections in consecutive years.
Accordingly we are now proposing, for those district councils and county councils where final recommendations are received no later than July 2000, and where we accept them, that implementation should be on the normal election day in May 2001. For those district councils and county councils where final recommendations are received between August 2000 and July 2002 and, where we accept them, implementation should be on the normal election day in May 2003.
This means that in May 2001, the normal election day for all county councils in England, there will be additional whole council elections for certain district councils. In May 2003, the normal election day for all whole council district council elections, there will be additional elections for certain county councils.
We are not making any special proposals for implementing the Commission's reviews of London boroughs. We envisage their implementation on the next normal election day for the boroughs in May 2002, a timetable consistent with the Commission's recommendations being received between June 1999 and January 2000.
We are now consulting the Local Government Association, the National Association of Local Councils, the Association of Electoral Administrators, the Local Government Commission, the Parliamentary Boundary Commission and the main political parties on the proposals. Following this consultation we will decide how to proceed.