Hereford and Worcester (Structural, Boundary and Electoral Changes) Order 1996
1996 No. 1867
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, ENGLAND AND WALES
The Hereford and Worcester (Structural, Boundary and Electoral Changes) Order 1996
Made 18th July 1996
Whereas the Local Government Commission for England, acting pursuant to section 15(4) of the Local Government Act 19921has submitted to the Secretary of State a report on its review of the county of Hereford and Worcester together with its recommendations:
And whereas the Secretary of State has decided to give effect, with modifications, to those recommendations:
Now, therefore, the Secretary of State, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 172, 18(3)(a) and 26 of the Local Government Act 1992, and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following Order, a draft of which has been laid before, and approved by a resolution of, each House of Parliament:
PART I
GENERAL
Citation and commencement
1. This Order may be cited as the Hereford and Worcester (Structural, Boundary and Electoral Changes) Order 1996 and shall come into force for the purposes of articles 2(2), 3, 4, 6 to 11, 14, 15 and 19 to 23 on the day after the day on which it is made and for all other purposes on 1st April 1998.
Interpretation
2.—(1) In this Order—
“the Act” means the Local Government Act 1992;
“the 1972 Act” means the Local Government Act 19723;
“the 1990 Act” means the Town and Country Planning Act 19904;
“existing”, in relation to an area, means that area as it exists on the date this Order is made;
“the relevant date” means 5th May 1997;
“relevant provision” means a provision in any subordinate legislation made under the Act or made, in connection with the Act or such provision, under any other enactment;
“the reorganisation date” means 1st April 1998; and
“subordinate legislation” has the same meaning as in section 21 of the Interpretation Act 19785
(2) The period beginning with the relevant date and ending immediately before the reorganisation date is specified as the preliminary period for the purposes of this Order and any other statutory instrument made under the Act.
PART II
BOUNDARY CHANGES
Constitution of new districts
3.—(1) A new non-metropolitan district of Malvern Hills shall be constituted and shall comprise the existing areas mentioned in Schedule 1.
(2) A new non-metropolitan district of Herefordshire shall be constituted and shall comprise the areas of—
(a)
(a) the existing city of Hereford6;
(b)
(b) the existing district of Leominster, except the areas in that district mentioned in Schedule 1;
(c)
(c) the existing district of Malvern Hills, except the areas in that district mentioned in Schedule 1; and
(d)
(d) the existing district of South Herefordshire.
Constitution of new county
4.—(1) A new non-metropolitan county of Worcestershire shall be constituted and shall comprise the areas of—
(a)
(a) the existing city of Worcester7;
(b)
(b) the existing borough of Redditch8;
(c)
(c) the existing districts of Bromsgrove, Wychavon and Wyre Forest; and
(d)
(d) the new district of Malvern Hills.
(2) During the period beginning with the date on which this article comes into force and ending immediately before the reorganisation date, the new county of Worcestershire shall not be a county for the purposes of—
(a)
(a) the Sheriffs Act 18879;
(b)
(b) the Education Acts 1944 to 1994;
(c)
(c) sections 130 and 133 to 137 of the Reserve Forces Act 1980 (which make provision in respect of the lieutenancies)10; or
(d)
(d) the Coroners Act 198811.
Other local government areas
5.—(1) The existing principal areas of the county of Hereford and Worcester, the city of Hereford and the districts of Leominster, Malvern Hills and South Herefordshire shall be abolished and the councils of those principal areas shall be wound up and dissolved.
(2) A new county shall be constituted comprising the area of the new district of Herefordshire and shall be named the county of Herefordshire.
(3) Section 2(1) of the 1972 Act (which provides that every county shall have a council) shall not apply in relation to the new county of Herefordshire.
PART III
ELECTORAL ARRANGEMENTS
Electoral areas in Malvern Hills
6.—(1) The new district of Malvern Hills shall be divided into 27 wards which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of Schedule 2.
(2) The wards shall comprise the areas respectively described (by reference to wards of the existing district of Malvern Hills12or, as the case may be, parishes in that district and the existing district of Leominster) in column (2) of that Schedule and the number of councillors to be elected for each ward shall be the number specified in respect of the ward in column (3) of that Schedule.
Electoral areas in Herefordshire
7.—(1) The new district of Herefordshire shall be divided into 44 wards which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of Schedule 3.
(2) The wards shall comprise the areas respectively described (by reference to existing wards13or, as the case may be, parishes) in column (2) of that Schedule and the number of councillors to be elected for each ward shall be the number specified in respect of the ward in column (3) of that Schedule.
Electoral areas in Worcestershire
8.—(1) The new county of Worcestershire shall be divided into 57 divisions which shall bear the names set out in column (1) of Schedule 4.
(2) Those divisions shall comprise the areas respectively described (by reference to existing divisions of the county of Hereford and Worcester14or, as the case may be, wards of the new district of Malvern Hills) in column (2) of that Schedule.
Election of councillors
9.—(1) Elections of all councillors of the councils of the new districts of Malvern Hills and Herefordshire shall be held simultaneously on the ordinary day of election of councillors in 1997, 2000 and 2003 and every fourth year after 200315; and the term of office of any councillor so elected shall be, in the case of a councillor elected in 1997 or 2000, three years and, in any other case, four years.
(2) Elections of all councillors of the council of the new county of Worcestershire shall be held simultaneously on the ordinary day of election of councillors in 1997 and every fourth year after 1997; and the term of office of every councillor so elected shall be four years.
(3) On the fourth day after an election held after 1997 by virtue of this article–
(a)
(a) the persons who were councillors immediately before the election shall retire; and
(b)
(b) the newly elected councillors shall come into office.
First elections
10. At the elections held in 1997 by virtue of article 9, the returning officer shall be—
(a) in the case of the new district of Malvern Hills, the returning officer appointed under section 35 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 by the council of the existing district of Malvern Hills;
(b) in the case of the new district of Herefordshire, the returning officer so appointed by the council of the existing district of South Herefordshire; and
(c) in the case of the new county of Worcestershire, the returning officer so appointed by the council of the existing county of Hereford and Worcester.
Suspension of elections and retirement of councillors
11.—(1) The ordinary election of councillors in 1997 for the council of the existing county of Hereford and Worcester shall not take place; and any councillor for that council holding office immediately before the relevant date who would, but for this paragraph, have retired on that date shall, unless he resigns his office or it otherwise becomes vacant, continue to hold office until the reorganisation date.
(2) Section 89 of the 1972 Act (filling of casual vacancies in case of councillors) shall have effect, in relation to a casual vacancy occurring in the office of councillor for any relevant electoral area, as if the reference in subsection (3) of that section to the day on which the councillor whose office is vacant would regularly have retired were a reference to the reorganisation date; and, for this purpose, “relevant electoral area” means a ward in the existing city of Hereford or the existing district of Leominster, Malvern Hills or South Herefordshire or an electoral division of the existing county of Hereford and Worcester.
PART IV
LOCAL GOVERNMENT REORGANISATION IN HEREFORD AND WORCESTER
Structural change
12. Subject to the following provisions of this Part and to any other relevant provision, the functions of the council of the existing county of Hereford and Worcester in relation to the area of the new district of Herefordshire (other than functions under Chapter II of Part II of the 1990 Act) shall be transferred to the council of that district.
Planning functions
13.—(1) The council of the new district of Herefordshire shall be treated as an authority to whose area Chapter I of Part II of the 1990 Act (“Chapter I”) (unitary development plans) applies, instead of Chapter II of that Part (structure and local plans).
(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1) above, the new district of Herefordshire shall be treated as if it were the area of a local planning authority in a metropolitan county and references in Chapter I to the local planning authority shall be construed accordingly.
(3) The 1990 Act shall have effect in relation to the new district of Herefordshire as if—
(a)
(a) in section 27 (meaning of “development plan” in Greater London and metropolitan counties), for the words “any district in Greater London or a metropolitan county (whether the...
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