§ Lord Marlesfordasked Her Majesty's Government:
What guidance will be available to the Local Government Commission in assessing the identities and interests of local communities.
§ The Minister of State, Department of the Environment (Baroness Blatch)We commissioned two research projects as a contribution to thinking on how to assess community identity in the restructuring of local government. The research is intended as a starting point for the Local Government Commission in its work in recommending changes to local government structure and boundaries. I have placed copies of the reportsIdentification with Local Areas by Alan Hedges and Application of Geographic Information Systems to Community Boundary Definition by the Centre for Urban and Regional Development Studies at Newcastle University in the Library. Copies have also been sent to the local authority associations and the Audit Commission.