Big changes for Norfolk constituency boundaries in planned shakeup
Norfolk electoral boundaries under review as part of shakeup.
Last updated 8th Jun 2021
All of Norfolk’s electoral areas are set to be redrawn under the initial plans announced today by the boundary commission for England (BCE) – an independent public body that reviews constituencies.
However, Norfolk will not see bits of Cambridgeshire brought into a cross-county constituency as planned in the failed 2018 review, which would have seen Littleport East and Littleport West in a South West Norfolk constituency.
Norfolk will also stay at nine constituencies, while there will be three new ones made across the Eastern Region. In total, the East of England will have 61 MPs.
Changes are also planned in Suffolk including a cross border constituency with Essex, while Waveney will see an area chopped off and be renamed to Lowestoft.
What are the proposed changes?
Hickling and Stalham, currently in the existing North Norfolk constituency, will go to Great Yarmouth
Fakenham to North Norfolk
Thorpe Hamlet switched from Norwich South to Norwich North
Norwich South gains Old Costessey and Costessey from South Norfolk
Mid Norfolk Easton from South Norfolk
Mid Norfolk will be extended to the Suffolk border
Upper Wensum and Lincoln to Broadland from Mid Norfolk
Hermitage, Launditch, and Necton to the South West Norfolk constituency
North West Norfolk constituency is unchanged except to realign its boundaries with new local government ward boundaries to the south of the constituency
Bungay & Wainford will no longer be included in Waveney
Waveney renamed Lowestoft
What happens next?
The BCE proposals will now go out for an eight weeks consultation, set to run from June 8, 2021, until August 2, 2021.
A six-week ‘secondary consultation’ period is planned for 2022.
The final decision will not be implemented until 2023.
This will be the third review in 11 years, with the last two failing to get off the ground.
Unlike the last two reviews, this one keeps the number of MPs in the UK at 650 instead of reducing it to 600. However, England will gain 10 MPs, while Scotland and Wales will lose out.
Tim Bowden, Secretary to the BCE, said they wanted to hear from people about the plans.
He said: “Today’s proposals mark the first-time people get to see what the new map of Parliamentary constituencies might look like.
“But they are just the Commission’s initial thoughts. Help us draw the line to make the number of electors in each Parliamentary constituency more equal.
“Each constituency we recommend is required by law to contain between 69,724 and 77,062 electors, meaning there will be significant changes to current boundaries.”
The proposals can be viewed at bcereviews.org.uk