The re-drawing of Cumbria's political map took a major step forward this week.

The Parliamentary Constituencies Bill 2019-21 moved to the House of Lords on Tuesday, bringing closer a major shake-up of how Cumbria's Parliamentary constituencies will look.

If the Bill makes it through the Lords, the independent Boundary Commission will become tasked with reviewing the size and shape of the country's constituency boundaries every eight years.

Crucially, the Bill removes the requirement for Parliament to vote on these changes before they are implemented, which Carlisle's MP John Stevenson says is an important step to avoid politicising any changes to boundaries.

"The estimate is that the average constituency will need about 72,000 to 73,000 voters. They will be allowed to be at most five per cent either side of that mark," Mr Stevenson said.

"At the moment, Carlisle has about 65,000 electors, so Carlisle has to expand probably by at least 5,000 voters."

Mr Stevenson said the logical step to would be to expand the Carlisle constituency towards the Scottish border.

"Obviously, the Boundary Commission could do something completely different," he said.

"The first proposals will come out next year. The final proposals will have to be in place by 2023."

Mr Stevenson said this new system would take political arguments out of the equation on boundary changes.

"This bill will simply set up the system. The outcome is decided by the Boundary Commission. Even Parliament will not have a vote on it. It is not up to the Government either," he said.

For the Labour Party in Carlisle, which held the seat for 50 years but have been unsuccessful in reclaiming it since 2010, a redrawn constituency boundary would present new challenges and opportunities.

Areas such as Brampton, which may be included in a redrawn Carlisle constituency, traditionally vote for Conservative Party candidates at the local election level.

Carlisle City Council's Labour Party group leader Colin Glover said that any expansion of the Parliamentary constituency boundary would likely increase its rural population.

But he said the party's message has resonance in these areas.

"We know there is Labour support in the rural area, in the last election and the election before that, we spent time in the rural area.

"The Labour Party has a strong message on the environment.

"We've got a strong offer whether people live in an urban area or a rural area.

"Our job is to put the message across that we can meet people's needs in a changing world."

Mr Glover added that any changes brought forward by the Boundary Commission need to be "future-proofed."

"We're looking at the creation of the St Cuthbert's Garden Village on the horizon, which is potentially going to create an additional 10,000 households over the next 30 years," he said.

"Carlisle is likely therefore to grow significantly in this area, so any changes need to be future-proofed to accommodate this development."