How proposed options for local government revamp could impact New Forest commoners

Chair of the New Forest Commoners’ Defence Association (CDA), Andrew Parry-Norton, has outlined how the proposed options for local government reorganisation could impact commoners.

New Forest District Council is calling on those in and around the Forest to give their feedback on the three proposals with commoners on parts of the Waterside and in Totton potentially hit in a variety of ways by the changes.

Here are Andrew’s thoughts on the issue:

‘Option one is for the New Forest to join up with the Test Valley, Winchester, a bit of east Hampshire and become what they’re going to call a Mid Hampshire District Council,’ he says.

‘Option two is that the New Forest basically is going to join up with Southampton. And so we (the New Forest] just become like an add-on to Southampton District Council.

‘Option three is to split the Waterside off, so the Forest will be divided up between Test Valley and Southampton District Council.

‘Now this won’t affect our rights as commoners – nothing will do that. But if Southampton take on the Waterside, the worrying concern would be obviously the back-up grazing.

‘Jo Ivey’s report that came out recently highlighted a lot of the problems we have with back-up grazing. So potentially would Southampton – an urban council – look after our back-up grazing? Planning could be an issue, as could representation.

‘Southampton is huge – a population of just under 300,000 – and we are going to be a very small minority. Are they going to understand our concerns of how the Forest runs and how it is so unique? There are potentially major problems.

‘My own personal view is we don’t want the Forest split. The Forest has to stay united. We’re working very hard on an agri-environmental scheme that will unite the whole Forest.

‘Let’s keep it together as one and make sure that commoners have a strong voice. We don’t want to see the Forest split, keep the Forest whole.

‘It’s your own choice and please make your own decisions on this, but I feel the Forest should stay united.’

Commoners impacted by the proposals can have their say in a survey through NFDC. You can take the survey here