THE Australian Electoral Commission will be holding a public meeting to allow those who have made submissions or comments on the proposed name for a new federal seat in WA to make further comment.

Forty-five submissions were lodged after the AEC proposed naming the new seat Bullwinkel in honour of Lieutenant Colonel Vivian Bullwinkel followed by 15 comments on the initial submissionsOn Tuesday AEC said the date for the public meeting was still to be set.

“This will be part of the expanded (redistribution) committee’s discussions soon with the date to be advised,’’ he said.

The location for the public meeting is also still to be determined.

“It depends on where the committee deems it to be most needed.

“Sometimes there is a meeting held in the relevant capital city, sometimes in a particular region or town of significant interest as part of public input – sometimes both.

“They’ll decide this soon.’’

He said the public meeting was part of the continuing consultative process that was a federal redistribution.

“The public meeting provides an opportunity for anyone who has submitted an objection to the proposal, or a comment, to expand on their case to the redistribution committee.

“Redistributions are very consultative with significant consideration of public input.’’

In Heroine’s name put forward for new seat (Echo News, July 5) John Lyon suggested the name Lyon after his surgeon aunt – Dr Marjorie Jean Lyon – should be considered.

Mr Lyon said what made his aunt a more appropriate woman to have the electorate named in her honour were the facts that “she was born in Northam, the heart of the proposed subdivision, went to school there and that her family lived there for 60 years or so practicing law.”.

He said significantly she had visited every school in the electorate checking on the health of children for about 20 years and in 1946 she had been awarded the OBE by the King for her work.

But in his comments Benjamin Close said Mr Lyon might be a bit biased and Lyons was already a division in Tasmania and it would create confusion.

In regards to the name Bullwinkel he agreed she was not born in WA and therefore the name probably didn’t belong in WA.

He seemed against Beard being considered in honour of Alma Beard instead of Bullwinkel as the seat’s boundaries were likely to change over time and no longer include Toodyay.

Mr Close said someone whose name had association with all of WA like his suggestion of Currie should be considered.