Highland Council to challenge Boundary Commission for Scotland constituency change proposals; plans include enlarging the Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross constituency
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A BATTLE is brewing over plans to redraw constituency boundaries in the far north, and reduce the number of Highland MPs.
Members of Highland council’s communities and place committee have unanimously rejected the Boundary Commission for Scotland’s revised proposals relating to the 2023 Review of UK Parliament constituencies and agreed that the council will challenge the proposals.
The revised proposals affecting Highland would impact on the areas bordering with Argyll and Bute Council and Moray Council areas.
The Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross constituency would also grow in size to take in Dingwall and the Black Isle, as well as some land to the west and south of the Beauly Firth.
Elsewhere the proposals include part of Highland Council Ward 21 in Lochaber being added to the proposed Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber County constituency.
In addition, the proposals would divide Moray Council area into two with a proposed constituency of Nairn, Strathspey and Moray West County with the inclusion of the Highland wards 17,18 and 20.
Councillors said that this would create unacceptably large constituency areas, cutting across local authority areas and in some cases splitting wards and dividing communities.
They agreed that the council will reject the Boundary Commission for Scotland’s proposals and that the council will lobby Highland MPs and the Secretary for State for Scotland to halt the Commission’s proposed changes.
Chair of the Communities and Place Committee, Cllr Graham MacKenzie said: “Members have unanimously voiced their concerns that these proposals would have a damaging effect on democracy and representation for the Highlands.
“We will support officers in highlighting our concerns and call in the strongest terms for a fundamental review of the methodology and approach used by the Boundary Commission and for no changes to be made in the meantime.”
Highland Council Convener Cllr Bill Lobban added: “Highland is being treated as an afterthought and putting large swathes of Highland into Argyll and Moray is not acceptable. We wholesale reject this proposal.”
