Ginninderra could become a 7-Member electorate and Molonglo could become a 5-Member electorate under major changes to the ACT Legislative Assembly electoral boundaries proposed by the Augmented ACT Electoral Commission, ACT Electoral Commissioner Phillip Green said today.

After considering 23 public objections to the boundaries proposed by the ACT Redistribution Committee, the Augmented Commission has proposed that Ginninderra be made the 7-Member electorate, consisting of Belconnen, Gungahlin and Hall and the suburbs of Lyneham, O’Connor and Turner.  Molonglo would become a 5-Member electorate.

The Augmented Commission does not propose to alter the existing 5-Member Brindabella electorate. 

While this proposal is different to the one published by the Redistribution Committee published on 5 May 2011, which suggested that the Gungahlin suburbs of Crace and Palmerston should be transferred from the existing 7-Member electorate of Molonglo to the existing 5-Member electorate of Ginninderra, it does reflect an alternative model that was also published by the Redistribution Committee.

Members of the public have 28 days in which to object to the Augmented ACT Electoral Commission’s proposal.  Objections in writing may be made to the ACT Electoral Commission up to 5 August 2011.

The proposed electorates are as follows:

BRINDABELLA, a 5-Member electorate comprising the district of Tuggeranong (excluding the suburb of Hume), the Woden Valley suburbs of Chifley, Farrer, Pearce and Torrens and the districts of Booth, Coree, Cotter River, Mount Clear, Paddys River, Rendezvous Creek and Tennent;

GINNINDERRA, a 7-Member electorate comprising the districts of Belconnen, Gungahlin and Hall, and the Canberra Central suburbs of Lyneham, O’Connor and Turner; and

MOLONGLO, a 5-Member electorate comprising the districts of Canberra Central (excluding the suburbs of Lyneham, O’Connor and Turner), Molonglo Valley, Weston Creek, Woden Valley (excluding the suburbs of Chifley, Farrer, Pearce and Torrens), Jerrabomberra (including the entire suburb of Hume), Kowen, Majura, and Stromlo.

“One key requirement for an ACT redistribution is ensuring that electoral enrolments in the three electorates will be within +/- 5% of the quota at the time of the next election.  This requirement is aimed at ensuring ‘one vote, one value’,” Mr Green said.  The quota for the two 5 member electorates is 5/17 of the ACT total enrolment, and the quota for the 7 member electorate is 7/17 of the ACT total.

“The current electorate of Molonglo is expected to be around 6.5% over the quota in 2012, and Ginninderra is projected to be 5.6% under the quota in 2012.  Consequently, the size of Molonglo needs to be reduced and Ginninderra needs to be increased to bring them within +/- 5% of the quota at the time of the 2012 election,” Mr Green said. 

The ACT Redistribution Committee proposal to transfer Crace and Palmerston from Molonglo to Ginninderra, while a relatively small change, would have resulted in 3 Gungahlin suburbs being in Ginninderra.  The Gungahlin suburb of Nicholls is currently the only part of Gungahlin in Ginninderra.

This proposal attracted 19 public objections to further increasing the split of Gungahlin between two electorates.  Many of these objections supported a proposal to alter the location of the 7-Member seat – currently Molonglo – to Ginninderra, to allow all of Belconnen and Gungahlin to be included in one electorate.  Some submissions also objected to the size and diverse nature of the current 7-Member electorate of Molonglo, which currently stretches from Gungahlin, through Canberra Central to Woden Valley and Weston Creek.

Other public submissions supported making the smaller change proposed by the Redistribution Committee.  A public hearing held on 24 June canvassed the issues raised in the objections.

After considering all the public submissions, the Augmented Commission concluded that the case for the proposed change to make Ginninderra the 7-Member electorate, comprising all of Belconnen, Gungahlin and  Hall and the north Canberra suburbs of Lyneham, O’Connor and Turner, is a strong one. 

The Augmented Commission’s reasons for its proposal, and a map of the proposed electorates, are attached. 

A notice inviting public objections and including a map of the proposed electorates is being published in the Canberra Times on 8 July 2011.  The Augmented ACT Electoral Commission’s reasons for its proposal and copies of public suggestions and objections made to the Committee are available from the ACT Electoral Commission’s office at North Building, London Circuit, Civic, and from this website at www.elections.act.gov.au.

Objections will be considered by the Augmented ACT Electoral Commission, chaired by the Electoral Commission’s Chairperson, Mr Roger Beale AO.