Boundaries
North Antrim has always been a county constituency comprising the northern part of County Antrim in the north-east of Northern Ireland. It has the sea to the north and east and parts of the border with County Londonderry to the west - the County Antrim town of Portrush is included in the East Londonderry constituency.
From 1885, this constituency was one of four county divisions carved out of the former constituency of Antrim. It comprised the baronies of Cary, Dunluce Lower, Dunluce Upper and Kilconway and returned one Member of Parliament from 1885 until 1922, when it was merged into a new Antrim constituency.
North Antrim was re-created in 1950 when the old Antrim two MP constituency was abolished as part of the final move to single member seats.
The constituency is largely rural. Amongst the features within its boundaries are Rathlin Island and Giant's Causeway.
The Boundary Commission initially proposed alterations for the boundaries of North Antrim prior to the United Kingdom general election, 2010. It was proposed to transfer Ballycastle and the Glens, including Rathlin Island, in Moyle to East Antrim and rename that seat Antrim Coast & Glens. However that proposal raised many questions, with some arguing that the Glens have no natural ties to Jordanstown.
Following consultation and revision, the constituency alterations were passed through the Northern Ireland Parliamentary Constituencies Order. The local areas making up the altered North Antrim are;
- The whole government areas of Ballymena, and Ballymoney
- From Moyle, Armoy, Ballylough, Bushmills, Bonamargy and Rathlin, Carnmoon, Dalriada, Dunseverick, Glenshesk, Glentaisie, Kinbane, Knocklayd, Moss-Side, and Moyarget.
Read more about this topic: North Antrim (UK Parliament Constituency)
Famous quotes containing the word boundaries:
“We must be generously willing to leave for a time the narrow boundaries in which our individual lives are passed ... In this fresh, breezy atmosphere ... we will be surprised to find that many of our familiar old conventional truths look very queer indeed in some of the sudden side lights thrown upon them.”
—Bertha Honore Potter Palmer (1849–1918)
“It is the story-teller’s task to elicit sympathy and a measure of understanding for those who lie outside the boundaries of State approval.”
—Graham Greene (1904–1991)
“Ideas are not thoughts; the thought respects the boundaries that the idea ignores thereby failing to realize itself.”
—Franz Grillparzer (1791–1872)