THE Local Government Boundary Commission is extending the timetable of its electoral review of Cornwall Council in order to allow the council to undertake a fundamental review of its governance.

The process will still start shortly as already planned but, following discussions with the leader of the council, the commission has decided to allow the council additional time to consider the total number of councillors that should be elected to the body in future.

The commission had previously sought the council’s view on the future number of councillors for Cornwall — there are currently 123 — by March this year. Instead, it will now allow councillors and council staff to make their submission — or submissions — on council size no later than March 2017.

The commission will announce its decision about council size shortly after the 2017 deadline and over the following months hold two phases of public consultation on new electoral arrangements. A new pattern of divisions will be confirmed in April 2018 for implementation at the local elections in 2021.

Professor Colin Mellors, chair of the commission, said: “Local government is changing. Nowhere will that change be more evident than in Cornwall.

“The leadership of the council has persuaded us that they want to use the electoral review process to ask some deep and fundamental questions about how local government for Cornwall should operate in the future and, especially, the number of councillors that will be required to run the authority. They want to consult widely as part of that process.

“This is a very important opportunity for Cornwall and we want to encourage them in what, we hope, will be some far-reaching thinking. We have, therefore, agreed to give them time to put a case together for a council size that reflects their ambitions for the long term.

“We will start work with the council immediately to help them come up with a proposal on councillor numbers and we have arranged to brief members of the council next few weeks to start that process.

“The best electoral reviews are those where we are able to work closely with councils, and with local people, to build electoral arrangements for councils that reflect the changing face of public services and democratic representation for the long term. The council have emphasised their wish to work with us in that way and the agreement we have now made with them will help us achieve that durable ambition for Cornwall”.