Revised Interim Report Released

The independent Electoral Boundaries Commission submitted its revised interim report to the Minister of Justice, today, July 20.

The commission released its interim report on June 1. The revised interim report follows a letter from Justice Minister Ross Landry, dated June 14, indicating he was not able to accept the interim report as drafted because the terms of reference were mandatory, not a matter of guidance.

Having been advised that the terms of reference were legally binding, the minister declared the report null and void and requested the commission prepare a revised interim report that fully complied with the terms of reference.

"We took the minister's direction very seriously," said commission chair Teresa MacNeil. "As with the interim report, it was a difficult process to achieve voter parity within the established limitation. However, we feel the current document shows that the terms of reference are fully addressed. We look forward to hearing from Nova Scotians during our second round of public meetings."

The focus of the revised interim report is on the previously protected constituencies and on submissions received from Nova Scotians since June 1.

As directed, the number of voters in each electoral district in the province now falls within 25 per cent of the average number of voters.

The commission proposes that:

• there should be 51 members in the House of Assembly
• three constituencies be eliminated, one in Cape Breton, one in Northeast Nova Scotia and one in Southwest Nova Scotia
• two new constituencies (Fairview-Clayton Park and Sackville-Beaver Bank) be added to the Halifax area

Boundary adjustments in the remaining constituencies were guided by the goal of relative voter parity to the greatest extent possible.

In relation to the protected constituencies, the commission proposes:

• Preston be expanded to include areas from the constituencies of Cole Harbour and Dartmouth East and to be renamed Dartmouth-Preston. The proposed new constituency moves towards the urban part of HRM.
• Richmond be expanded to include parts of Cape Breton West and the Town of Port Hawkesbury and to be renamed Cape Breton-Southwest.
• Clare and Argyle be merged with the adjacent constituency of Yarmouth. The proposed constituency of Yarmouth-Argyle would contain the Town of Yarmouth and the District of Argyle. The proposed constituency of Clare-Yarmouth would contain the remaining area of Yarmouth District and the District of Clare.

The second round of public meetings will begin on Tuesday, Aug. 7 in Port Hawkesbury. A final report is expected to be delivered to government by Friday, Aug. 31.

The Electoral Boundaries Commission was appointed at the end of December 2010 to establish not more than 52 seats in the House of Assembly and maximize the parity of voting power. It was asked that all constituencies be within 25 per cent of the average number of electors.

The commission was also asked to provide advice on how legislators can address concerns about the size of geographic areas, community history and interests, and linguistic and cultural diversity, noting the Acadians and African-Nova Scotia populations.

The revised interim report and the complete list of the second round of public meetings can be found at nselectoralboundaries.ca.