TIME is running out for people to have their say on new county division boundaries, electoral divisions and division names which could see a change in the way Alton is represented on Hampshire County Council.

The independent Local Government Boundary Commission for England is asking people to comment on its draft proposals as part of an eight-week public consultation that will end on January 11.

The commission’s draft recommendations propose that Hampshire County Council should retain its 78 councillors who will represent 72 single-member divisions and three two-member divisions, one of which is Alton, which will continue to be split into a Town and a Rural division, but in a different way.

Alton is currently served by two councillors, one responsible for the town and the other for the surrounding rural area, effectively forming “doughnut”. However, the boundary commission is not inclined to continue with such a division pattern which it feels is “unlikely to reflect community identities and interests or communication links in the rural area”.

The proposal is for an Alton Rural division comprising the parishes of Bentley, Binsted, Chawton, Farringdon, Four Marks, Froyle, Kingsley, Medstead, Newton Valence, Selborne, Worldham and the Holybourne area of Alton Town, added “to minimise any electoral imbalance”.

The recommendation for Alton Town division is to cover the majority of the town, minus Holybourne but including the rural parishes of Beech, Bentworth, Lasham, Shalden and Wield “in order to avoid a division which is completely surrounded by an Alton Rural division”.

This arrangement is felt to better reflect the boundary commission statutory criteria which is to improve electoral equality by equalising the number of electors each councillor represents, reflect community identity, and provide for effective and convenient local government.

In 2014, the electorate of Hampshire stood at 1,020,276, and by 2021 it is expected to increase to 1,079,000 with 78 councillors serving a population of 13,846 (compared to 13,080 in 2014).

The commission’s draft recommendations propose that Hampshire County Council should continue to have 78 county councillors – seven for East Hampshire, the same as the current arrangements.

Max Caller, the commission chairman, said: “We are asking local people to log on to our website or visit their local library to have a look at our proposals for new division boundaries for Hampshire. We are keen to hear what local people think of the recommendations and to tell us if they agree with the proposals.

“If you don’t agree with the boundaries we have drawn, we would like to hear your alternatives.”

He continued: “Our review aims to deliver electoral equality for voters in elections to Hampshire County Council. This means that each county councillor represents a similar number of electors so that everyone’s vote in county council elections is worth roughly the same regardless of where you live. We also aim to ensure that the council’s divisions reflect, as far as possible, the interests and identities of local communities across the county.

“We will consider all the submissions we receive whoever they are from and whether your evidence applies to the whole of Hampshire or just a part of the county.”

The full recommendations and detailed interactive maps are available on the commission’s website at consultation.lgbce.org.uk and lgbce.org.uk. Hard copies of the commission’s report and maps will also be available to view at council buildings and libraries.

Submissions should be sent to: The Review Officer (Hampshire) LGBCE, 14th floor, Millbank Tower, London SW1P 4QP or online via lgbce.org.uk. Any adjustments to Hampshire’s electoral arrangements would come into effect at the county council’s elections in 2017.