Cornwall Council's Electoral Review Panel have met to discuss the future size of the authority.

Earlier this week the Local Government Boundary Commission wrote to the council's chief executive proposing that the authority should have 87 councillors in the future.

This is subject to a further period of consultation being staged by the commission over the next eight weeks.

They will then confirm the council size in September, and the new figure will come into effect in 2021.

Malcolm Brown, the member for the St Austell Bethel electoral division, was elected as the chairman of the panel, with Dick Cole, the member for the St Enoder electoral division, elected as the vice chairman.

Thanking John Wood, the previous chairman of the Electoral Review Panel for his excellent work over the past twelve months, Malcolm Brown said that the decision of the commission to stage a further eight week period of consultation on its proposal for 87 councillors, rather than announcing its final decision on the size of the council as had been expected, meant a considerable amount of work for both the panel and the council over a very short period of time.

Malcolm said: "As well as developing our response to this unexpected additional period of consultation on the proposed figure of 87 councillors, we also need to start work on the next stage of the electoral review process which means drawing up proposals for division patterns.

“This is an incredibly complex piece of work which involves producing a series of maps showing options for how divisional boundaries could be drawn.

"These need to take into account a number of different criteria, including the current boundaries of community network areas, parish and town council boundaries and physical features.”