COUNCILLORS have ridiculed a review of polling stations being carried out by Somerset Council and said it would deter people from voting in elections.

Somerset Council is looking at polling stations for Wellington East, Wellington West and Rockwell Green.

It has been proposed that there should be two polling places for Wellington East and Wellington West, located less than a mile apart in the central and southern part of the town, along with one polling station for Rockwell Green.

But the review has indicated that there should be no polling station whatsoever in the northern part of Wellington – despite there being significant residential population and planned future growth.

Wellington Town Council’s chief executive, Dave Farrow, in a report said: “These proposals raise concerns about accessibility, geographic balance and equitable provision for electors.

“The two proposed polling places for Wellington East and West are located extremely close together – resulting in duplication of provision in one small area, inefficient distribution of polling facilities and limited coverage for the wider town.

“No polling station is proposed for any other parts of Wellington and this will create a significant gap because the northern part of Wellington contains a large and growing residential population. Walking access to the two proposed central/southern polling places is limited for many residents whilst the review’s criteria emphasise accessibility and reasonable proximity.”

Councillors were quick to criticise the consultation when they met for Wellington Town Council’s full council meeting on August 3.

Cllr Janet Lloyd said: “This is ridiculous. It will mean people from the north of the town having to come into town to vote.”

Cllr Chris Booth added: “This review is unacceptable in its current state.”

And Cllr John Thorne, to the point, said: “It’s nonsense!”

Cllr Ross Henley said: “It’s not really a driver to increase input into democracy by getting people to vote.”