Weymouth and Portland was a
local government district and
borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
In the Middle ...
in
Dorset
Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
. It consisted of the resort of
Weymouth and the
Isle of Portland
An isle is an island, land surrounded by water. The term is very common in British English. However, there is no clear agreement on what makes an island an isle or its difference, so they are considered synonyms.
Isle may refer to:
Geography
* ...
, and includes the areas of
Wyke Regis,
Preston
Preston is a place name, surname and given name that may refer to:
Places
England
*Preston, Lancashire, an urban settlement
**The City of Preston, Lancashire, a borough and non-metropolitan district which contains the settlement
**County Boro ...
,
Melcombe Regis,
Upwey,
Broadwey,
Southill,
Nottington,
Westham,
Radipole
Radipole was is a suburb of Weymouth in Dorset, England.
History
It was formerly an independent parish, until abolished as a separate local government unit in 1933. It remains a separate ecclesiastical parish. Radipole stands at the head of, an ...
,
Chiswell,
Castletown,
Fortuneswell,
Weston,
Southwell and
Easton; the latter six being on the
Isle of Portland
An isle is an island, land surrounded by water. The term is very common in British English. However, there is no clear agreement on what makes an island an isle or its difference, so they are considered synonyms.
Isle may refer to:
Geography
* ...
.
In
Portland Harbour is the
Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy, where the sailing events at the
2012 Olympics took place. The main reason that the resort was chosen to be an
Olympic venue was that the Sailing Academy had only recently been built, so no new venue would need to be provided.
Weymouth and Portland's waters have also been credited by the
Royal Yachting Association as the best in
Northern Europe.
Weymouth and Portland have been twinned with the town of
Holzwickede
Holzwickede () is a municipality in the district of Unna in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the Europe ...
in
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhab ...
,
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...
, since 1986,
and the
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
town of
Louviers, in the
department of
Eure
Eure () is a department in Normandy in Northwestern France, named after the river Eure. Its prefecture is Évreux. In 2019, Eure had a population of 599,507.[Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...]
, since 1959.
Politics
The district of Weymouth and Portland was formed on 1 April 1974 under the
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant Acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...
, which merged the borough of Weymouth and Melcombe Regis and the nearby
Portland
Portland most commonly refers to:
* Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States
* Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...
urban district. The district was divided into 15 wards for elections—12 of those in Weymouth, and three in Portland.
Elections
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...
took place in a four-year cycle; one third of the councillors in all but three wards retire or seek re-election in years one, two and three, and county council elections were held in year four.
In its final term the District Council was a multi-party administration under the leadership of the Conservatives.
Weymouth and Portland and
Purbeck districts were in the
South Dorset parliamentary
constituency, created in 1885. The constituency elects one
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house ...
. The current MP for South Dorset is
Richard Drax, a member of the
Conservative Party, who was voted in during the 2010 General Election, beating the incumbent
Labour MP
Jim Knight. Weymouth and Portland, the rest of the
south west, and
Gibraltar were in the
South West England constituency of the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adop ...
.
The borough and its council was abolished on 1 April 2019 and, together with the other 4 districts outside the greater Bournemouth area, formed a new
Dorset
Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of ...
unitary authority. At the same time, a
town council
A town council, city council or municipal council is a form of local government for small municipalities.
Usage of the term varies under different jurisdictions.
Republic of Ireland
Town Councils in the Republic of Ireland were the second t ...
serving only Weymouth and its suburbs was formed, called Weymouth Town Council.
See also
*
Weymouth and Portland Borough Council elections
Weymouth and Portland Borough Council in Dorset, England existed from 1974 to 2019. One-third of the council was elected each year, followed by one year where there was an election to Dorset County Council instead. The council was abolished and s ...
*
List of churches in Weymouth and Portland
The following is a list of churches in Weymouth and Portland.
List
* All Saints Church, Wyke Regis
* Avalanche Memorial Church
* Broadwey Methodist Church
* Easton Methodist Church, Portland
* Holy Trinity Church, Weymouth
* Hope United ...
References
{{Authority control
Non-metropolitan districts of Dorset
Former non-metropolitan districts
Former boroughs in England
2019 disestablishments in England