The Boundary Commission for England has released its updated proposals for new constituency boundaries across the country. In our area the headline recommendation is that the boundaries for both Oldham West & Royton and Oldham East & Saddleworth will stay the same- a recommendation both myself and Debbie Abrahams MP had argued in favour of.
In previous rounds of proposals there had been suggestions of swapping the Alexandra and St Mary’s wards which are currently in Oldham East & Saddleworth with the Royton North & South wards currently in Oldham West & Royton. I wrote to the Commission arguing against this as having no electoral value and not recognising the natural links which shape our area. This is particularly the case given the importance of Broadway & Manchester Road in connecting the constituency through Chadderton and on to Royton. I am pleased that the Commission has taken these proposals on board.
However, while I am pleased the Commission has retained the same boundaries, I am disappointed they have rejected my suggestion of a change of name to the constituency in order to represent Chadderton. I, alongside many people in Chadderton, including the Chadderton Historical Society, proposed that a more appropriate name would be Oldham West, Chadderton & Royton. As Chadderton makes up around 31% of the population of the constituency, I feel this is a missed opportunity for the constituency name to recognise its second largest town. I know many will share this view so if you support the inclusion of Chadderton in the constituency name please do get in touch with my office or the Boundary Commission to show support for the change. This will be a proposal I will continue to advocate for as the Committee makes its final deliberations before producing the final report in July 2023.
Jim McMahon OBE MP 