Political

Tories toy with abandoning plans to shrink Commons and redraw boundaries

The on-ice plans to reduce the House of Commons to 600 seats with a consequential redrawing of constituency boundaries would help the Conservative Party overall but also threaten the individual careers of some of their MPs.

With an election win under their belt, that benefit doesn’t look quite so urgent to acquire for the Conservatives and there are now more Conservative MPs who could be losers. And so this:

David Cameron may renege on a Tory manifesto pledge to reduce the number of MPs to 600 following resistance from backbenchers…

A Tory MP told the paper: “The whips’ office said it wasn’t happening.”

A government figure said discussions on dropping the commitment were at “very early stages”.

Last week, Graham Brady, chairman of the Tory backbench group the 1922 Committee, said it would be “easier and simpler” to keep the House of Commons at its current size. [PoliticsHome]

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