Putney and Roehampton set to be represented by different MPs

The proposed Putney and Wandsworth Town constituency

Putney and Roehampton are set to be represented by different MPs after the Boundary Commission broadly confirmed the proposals they made for the area last October.

The main change from the original plan announced this Monday (10 September) is that, rather than being called Wandsworth & Putney, the new constituency will be known as Putney & Wandsworth Town.

The radical changes to the existing arrangement include splitting up the current Putney constituency with the Roehampton & Putney Heath ward being moved into an expanded Wimbledon seat. The remainder of the seat, which is currently represented by Justine Greening, would incorporate wards around the centre of Wandsworth.

The assistant commissioners observed that there were links between the Earlsfield ward and Putney and, in particular, the Southfields ward, and that the inclusion of this ward, as well as the Fairfield ward, would provide a better fit of wards than the inclusion of the Wandsworth Common ward and that it resulted in a more cohesive shape to the constituency.

In their final report the commissioners said, "We carefully considered the case for the inclusion of the Roehampton and Putney Heath ward in the Wandsworth and Putney constituency, and we are not satisfied that we received persuasive evidence to justify changing this proposal. We note that the counter-proposal that aims to include this ward in a constituency with Putney results in the division of the Earlsfield ward between constituencies. We consider that the division of this ward between constituencies is likely to break community ties and does not appear to command any further local support, or offer a generally better solution in terms of the statutory criteria."

The earlier proposal to absorb part of the Wimbledon Parliamentary constituency had been dropped following considerable objections generally from Wimbledon residents. Representations from the Wimbledon area were the largest for any part of London.

The revised proposal for the Putney and Wandsworth Town would have a total of 72,359 voters:
Earlsfield - 10,820
East Putney - 10,060
Fairfield - 9,986
Southfields - 11,168
Thamesfield - 10,761
West Hill - 9,704
West Putney - 9,860

The latest plan is part of proposals to reduce the number of constituencies in England from 533 to 501, with each having an electorate no smaller than 71,031 and no bigger than 78,507. The number of constituencies in London must be reduced from 73 to 68.

The plan will be put to parliament and if MPs accept it, the new boundaries will be used at the next election which is due to take place in May 2022.

Secretary to the commission, Sam Hartley, said, "We're confident that the new map of constituencies best reflects the rules set for us by Parliament and we're especially pleased that our recommendations are based heavily on what members of the public have told us about their local areas.

"It is now up to the government to present our report to Parliament, and we look forward to being able to publish our recommendations once that has happened."

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September 12, 2018