Bonkers boundaries: Join the march for Gloucester plea
D-DAY is almost here – this is your chance to save this city.
At 12.30pm tomorrow, a massive gathering will come together at The Cross to say "no" to Boundary Commission proposals to "rip the heart" out of Gloucester.
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People power: Gloucester traders and businesses are urging people to join a march in the city tomorrow against the proposed boundary changes.
Banner-waving campaigners, furious about the possibility of losing the Westgate ward to the Forest of Dean, aim to send a loud message that moving the boundary is not wanted.
The Federation for Small Businesses (FSB), which has organised the march, is making a last-ditch plea for "anyone with the city's interests at heart" to get involved.
They want everyone from pensioners, to young people, to workers able to take a lunch break, to get out and take part.
Mark Owen, from the FSB, said: "I would appeal to everyone. Do not let the history of this great city be determined by your silence, join us tomorrow and help us make a statement that will be heard." Yesterday, posters were placed inside shop windows and hundreds of leaflets were handed out to publicise it. The Boundary Commission is consulting over its proposal to transfer around 4,000 voters in Westgate to the Forest's parliamentary remit from 2015.
The commission has been ordered to cut the number of MPs nationally from 650 to 600, and alter boundary sizes so they are all a similar size.
The Forest, with a population of 68,703 is short of 4,109 voters and Gloucester has 315 too many at 80,788.
Councillor Pam Tracey (Con, Westgate) said: "The whole thing is ridiculous - I hope lots of people get on the march, we need to send a message."
Coun Paul James (Con, Longlevens), leader of the city council, added: "We need people to show the depth of feeling there is."
5 Comments
by fiforinfo
Thursday, November 03 2011, 9:40PM
“Our M.P. voted for the change. Does he know what he's doing in Parliament? He is supposed to represent the voters here, not vote for a change in the boundaries and then try to make local political capital about the changes.”
by MimiGallagher
Thursday, November 03 2011, 9:37PM
“bonkers campaign more like. come on you get an MP still, so get over it.”
by ds9074
Thursday, November 03 2011, 7:56PM
“Incidentally just what do these posters being shown saying "save our city centre" mean? What do the protesters think this change means? I really do not see how having two MPs covering Gloucester is any threat to the city centre that requires it to be 'saved'. It is not as if this plan means the Cathedral is going to be demolished or a wall is going to be built between the city centre and the rest of Gloucester! A change to the Parliamentary Boundary, as opposed to the City Council boundaries, really means very little on the ground - it just means people in Westgate would vote for a different MP, so two MPs would have a claim to speak up for Gloucester in Parliament. Most larger cities like Bristol or Birmingham have multiple MPs and they seem to manage somehow to also be one city under their respective city councils.”
by ds9074
Thursday, November 03 2011, 7:45PM
“If this was anything worth getting worked up about I would be tempted to hold a counter demonstration in favour of fair parliamentary boundaries, where MPs across the whole country are elected by similar numbers of voters, which this change is just one part of.”
by dopalus
Thursday, November 03 2011, 4:25PM
“I am 'Harold the Herald' of Fullers Court Gloucester and I will don my warriors outfit and lead this march with Tracey Pam,just to be seen.Like the rest I was not born in Westgate,its just something to do.”