WILMSLOW Town Council will write to the Boundary Commission, contesting its proposal to split the town into two parliamentary constituencies.

Following a review into boundary changes, the commission proposed that the existing Tatton constituency would be scrapped and the town would be represented by two MPs.

Wilmslow Dean Row and Handforth would be moved into a new Bramhall and Poynton constituency, while the rest of Wilmslow would move into the Macclesfield constituency.

At a meeting on Monday, November 21, members of Wilmslow Town Council councillors confirmed their intention to make a representation to the commission.

The council’s draft statement to the commission said: “Whilst as a town council we would prefer to be part of a constituency that sits solely in Cheshire, the priority of the council is that Wilmslow as a whole remains in a single parliamentary constituency, and would accept a proposal to ensure this happens.”

Following the meeting Cllr Gary Barton, town and borough councillor for Wilmslow West and Chorley, told the Guardian that splitting Wilmslow would be a symbolic reversal of the town council’s work in uniting the area’s communities.

“Cllr Frank McCarthy spoke at the meeting about the great work the council has done to build a sense of community in Wilmslow, and that also goes for groups like Incredible Edible and the Wilmslow Business Group,” he said.

“That is something that perhaps 10 years ago we didn’t have so much, and to have that effort symbolically broken would be a big shame.”

The Boundary Commission is trying to even the number of constituents in each parliamentary seat, while reducing the number of MPs from 650 to 600.

Earlier this month Tatton MP George Osborne wrote to the Guardian, proposing that Wilmslow remained in a single constituency and merged with nearby Cheadle, in Greater Manchester, and Cllr Barton is hopeful that the commission will listen to Mr Osborne and the council’s argument.

He said: “I think there is about a 50-50 chance the proposal could be accepted – on a numbers basis it works and it hasn’t faced opposition.”