The District of Basildon (Electoral Changes) Order 2001

Statutory Instruments

2001 No. 2443

LOCAL GOVERNMENT, ENGLAND

The District of Basildon (Electoral Changes) Order 2001

Made

4th July 2001

Coming into force in accordance with article 1(2) and (3)

Whereas the Local Government Commission for England, acting pursuant to section 15(4) of the Local Government Act 1992(1), has submitted to the Secretary of State a report dated November 2000 on its review of the district of Basildon together with its recommendations:

And whereas the Secretary of State has decided to give effect to those recommendations:

Now, therefore, the Secretary of State, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 17(2) and 26 of the Local Government Act 1992, and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following Order:

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.—(1) This Order may be cited as the District of Basildon (Electoral Changes) Order 2001.

(2) This article and articles 2, 3 and 5 shall come into force—

(a) for the purpose of proceedings preliminary or relating to any election to be held on 2nd May 2002, on 15th October 2001;

(b) for all other purposes, on 2nd May 2002.

(3) Article 4 of this Order shall come into force—

(a) for the purpose of proceedings preliminary or relating to the election of parish councillors for the parish of Billericay to be held on 6th May 2004, on 15th October 2003;

(b) for all other purposes, on 6th May 2004.

(4) In this Order—

“district” means the district of Basildon;

“existing”, in relation to a ward, means the ward as it exists on the date this Order is made; and

any reference to the map is a reference to the map prepared by the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions marked “Map of the District of Basildon (Electoral Changes) Order 2001”, and deposited in accordance with regulation 27 of the Local Government Changes for England Regulations 1994(3).

Wards of district of Basildon

2.—(1) The existing wards of the district(4) shall be abolished.

(2) The district shall be divided into sixteen wards which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of Schedule 1.

(3) The wards shall comprise the area designated on the map by reference to the name of the ward and demarcated by red lines; and the number of councillors to be elected for each ward shall be the number specified in respect of the ward in column (2) of that Schedule.

(4) Where a boundary is shown on the map as running along a road, railway line, footway, watercourse or similar geographical feature, it shall be treated as running along the centre line of the feature.

Elections of the council of Basildon

3.—(1) Subject to the following provisions of this article, the election of councillors for wards of the district shall be by thirds.

(2) Elections of all councillors for all wards of the district shall be held simultaneously on the ordinary day of election of councillors in 2002(5).

(3) The councillors holding office for any ward of the district immediately before 6th May 2002 shall retire on that date and the newly-elected councillors for those wards shall come into office on that date.

(4) The order of retirement of councillors shall be as set out in Schedule 2.

(5) Of the councillors elected in 2002—

(a) the first to retire shall, subject to paragraphs (6) and (7), be the councillor elected by the smallest number of votes; and

(b) the second to retire shall, subject to those paragraphs, be the councillor elected by the next smallest number of votes.

(6) In the case of an equality of votes between any persons elected which makes it uncertain which of them is to retire in any year, the person to retire in that year shall be determined by lot.

(7) If an election of councillors for any ward is not contested, the person to retire in each year shall be determined by lot.

(8) Where under this article any question is to be determined by lot, the lot shall be drawn at the next practicable meeting of the council after the question has arisen and the drawing shall be conducted under the direction of the person presiding at the meeting.

(9) Except as otherwise provided in the preceding paragraphs of this article, the term of office of councillors shall be four years; and all councillors shall retire on the fourth day after the ordinary day of election of councillors in the year of retirement and the newly-elected councillors shall come into office on the day on which their predecessors retire.

Wards of the parish of Billericay

4.—(1) The existing wards of the parish of Billericay shall be abolished.

(2) The parish of Billericay shall be divided into three parish wards which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of Schedule 3; each parish ward shall comprise the area of the district ward specified in respect of the parish ward in column (2) of that Schedule; and the number of councillors to be elected for each parish ward shall be the number specified in respect of the parish ward in column (3) of that Schedule.

Revocation

5.  The District of Basildon (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1978 is hereby revoked.

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions

Alan Whitehead

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State,

Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions

4th July 2001

article 2

SCHEDULE 1 NAMES AND NUMBERS OF COUNCILLORS

(1)	(2)
Name of Ward	Number of Councillors
Billericay East	3
Billericay West	3
Burstead	3
Crouch	2
Fryerns	3
Laindon Park	3
Langdon Hills	2
Lee Chapel North	3
Nethermayne	3
Pitsea North West	3
Pitsea South East	3
St Martin's	2
Vange	2
Wickford Castledon	2
Wickford North	3
Wickford Park	2

article 3(4)

SCHEDULE 2 ORDER OF RETIREMENT OF COUNCILLORS

(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)
Name of Ward	Number of councillors to retire in 2003	Number of councillors to retire in 2004	Number of councillors to retire in 2006
Billericay East	1	1	1
Billericay West	1	1	1
Burstead	1	1	1
Crouch		1	1
Fryerns	1	1	1
Laindon Park	1	1	1
Langdon Hills		1	1
Lee Chapel North	1	1	1
Nethermayne	1	1	1
Pitsea North West	1	1	1
Pitsea South East	1	1	1
St Martin's	1	1
Vange	1	1
Wickford Castledon	1		1
Wickford North	1	1	1
Wickford Park	1		1

article 2

SCHEDULE 3 WARDS OF THE PARISH OF BILLERICAY NAMES AND AREAS OF WARDS AND NUMBERS OF COUNCILLORS

(1)	(2)	(3)
Name of Ward	Area of Ward	Number of Councillors
Billericay East	The district ward of Billericay East	8
Billericay South West	So much of the district ward of Burstead as comprises part of the parish of Billericay	3
Billericay West	The district ward of Billericay West	9

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order gives effect to recommendations by the Local Government Commission for England for electoral changes in the district of Basildon. The changes have effect in relation to the local government elections to be held on and after 2nd May 2002.

Article 2 abolishes the existing wards of the district and provides for the creation of 16 new wards. That article and Schedule 1 also make provision for the names and areas of, and numbers of councillors for, the new wards.

Article 3 makes provision for a whole council election in 2002 and for reversion to elections by thirds in subsequent years. Schedule 2 regulates the order of retirement of councillors.

Article 4 makes electoral changes in the parish of Billericay.

Article 5 revokes the District of Basildon (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1978.

The areas of the new district wards are demarcated on the map described in article 1(3). Prints of the map may be inspected at all reasonable times at the offices of Basildon District Council and at the offices of the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, 2nd Floor, Ashdown House, 123 Victoria Street, London SW1E 6DE.

(1)

1992 c. 19.

(2)

Section 17 is amended by section 39(4) and (5) of the Police and Magistrates' Courts Act 1994 (c. 29).

(3)

S.I. 1994/867, to which there are amendments not relevant to this Order.

(4)

See the District of Basildon (Electoral Arrangements) Order 1978 (S.I. 1978/87).

(5)

For the ordinary day of election of councillors of local government areas, see section 37 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (c. 2), amended by section 18(2) of the Representation of the People Act 1985 (c. 50) and section 17 of, and paragraphs 1 and 5 of Schedule 3 to, the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (c. 29).