MARK Jenkinson MP has shared his thoughts on the redrawn boundaries for the Penrith and Solway constituency announced today.
The final recommendation of the Boundary Commission will see the former borough wards of Keswick and Crummock & Derwent Valley added to the Penrith and Solway constituency, the seat Mark will be contesting as the Conservative candidate in the next general election, following a membership selection process held in February.
Meanwhile, Seaton and Northside will be reunited with Workington as part of the redrawn Whitehaven and Workington seat, with the addition of Flimby.
The Boundary Commission heard that Keswick has stronger links to Penrith than it does to either Workington or Whitehaven. There were objections that the earlier forms of the Penrith and Solway constituency did not take proper account of the impact of physical geography, for example, on connectivity for rural constituents.
When I was deputy leader of Allerdale Borough Council, Keswick was part of the borough council’s remit and it was a town I was proud to serve.
I am pleased that Maryport, Cockermouth, Silloth and many of the villages which are part of my present constituency will be included in the Penrith and Solway Constituency for which I have been selected to stand as the Conservative candidate. As many will know, after decades of neglect of the wider constituency by my predecessors, I chose to base my office in Maryport rather than Workington so that I was more central to my constituency – and was better able to represent the people I was elected to serve.
I am, of course, disappointed to lose Seaton from my prospective parliamentary seat. This is the village where I live, and which I am proud to call home. I have represented the village long before I became an MP in 2019 as a parish councillor and also as a borough councillor.
I am also sad to lose Flimby - an oft-forgotten ward, where I have done a lot of work since my election. It makes sense to keep Seaton with the wider Workington, which is why I vociferously supported the first iteration of the boundaries which kept the constituency as it is today, with the addition of Dalston and Wigton.
My argument has always been that communities with strong connection should stay together, but the Boundary Commission was flooded with representations – including those from the local Labour Party and Liberal Democrats – imploring them to split the constituency.
Flimby’s separation from the wider Maryport is the unfortunate result of their campaigning, although I hope it may give some impetus to the campaign for a separate Flimby Parish Council.
I will continue to fight tooth and nail for my constituents – those I represent now and those I hope to represent in the future.”
Mark Jenkinson MP
The Speaker of the House of Commons now has to lay an order in council by the 28th October, and any general election after that will be held on those new boundaries.
Any by-elections prior to a general election will be held on current boundaries. Members of Parliament continue to represent their current constituencies until the next general election.
