§ Dr. CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the terms of reference for the Parliamentary Boundary Commission for England, fourth general review; what is its timetable; and what is its progress to date.
§ Mrs. RumboldThe Boundary Commission for England is carrying out its fourth general review of constituencies under the provisions of the Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986. Under the Act, it is required to 107W submit reports on all the constituencies in England to the Secretary of State not less than 10 nor more than 15 years after the submission of the previous such reports. The Commission is therefore required to report between February 1993 and February 1998.
Since the start of the review, in February, the Commission has obtained ward electorates from the 1991 electoral register. These have been updated to take account of ward changes up to 1 April. A list giving the electorate for each ward has been placed in the Library.
Later this month, the Commission will be considering its provisional recommendations for Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset; these will be published later this year.
§ Dr. CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list biographical details of each member of the Parliamentary Boundary Commission for England.
§ Mrs. RumboldThe information requested is as follows: The chairman of the Commission is the Speaker of the House of Commons.
The deputy chairman is Sir John Knox. He was called to the Bar in 1953, became a QC in 1979, and was appointed a judge of the Chancery Division of the High Court in 1985. He is also a member of the Lord Chancellor's Law Reform Committee.
Miss Sheila Cameron QC was called to the Bar in 1957 and became a QC in 1983. She is a deputy High Court judge, recorder, and vicar-general of the province of Canterbury and a member of the parliamentary, planning and local government Bar.
Mr. David Macklin CBE is a former chief executive of Devon county council and has also held local government posts in Derbyshire and Lincolnshire.