Tory MPs may lose their seats too, even Boris

TALK this week has turned to the Labour Party’s potential loss of seats in the upcoming carve-up of constituency boundaries. The Tories might have assumed they would avoid trouble, but there may be a few surprises around the corner. The Londoner hears that Victoria Borwick, MP for Kensington, and even Boris Johnson may have battles on their hands in their west London territories.

Boundary Commission proposals could slash the number of Members of Parliament from 650 to 600 before a 2020 election. The changes will also even out the size of constituencies to around 75,000 voters. London, then, will likely lose around five MPs, and 60 of the capital’s 72 seats are likely to change shape. Labour may lose as many as 30 representatives but the squeeze could lead to problems for Borwick.

A source tells us that the Kensington constituency, with only 62,000 voters, is likely to have its boundaries redrawn. One expert on a detailed message board sug gests the s e a t m ay even be “abolished”. She may have to compete for reselection with fellow Conservative Greg Hands of Chelsea and Fulham.

There is form: Borwick’s predecessor, Sir Malcolm Rifkind, had to be reselected by the Tory party when his Kensington & Chelsea c o n s t i t u e n c y b e c a me Kensington in 2010. “To be honest, we are all subject to the whims of the Boundary Commission,” he told The Londoner yesterday.

Even Boris isn’t safe. His Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency borders shadow chancellor John McDonnell’s in Hayes and Harlington, and wards may be in dispute between the two. “I relish the prospect of a Celebrity Deathmatch between BoJo and John McDonnell,” wrote one online commentator. As do we.