New Forest is a local government district in Hampshire, England.
The district covers most of the New Forest National Park, from which it takes its name.
The district was created on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, by the merger of the municipal borough of Lymington with New Forest Rural District and part of Ringwood and Fordingbridge Rural District.
With its population estimated at 179,753 in mid-2018, New Forest is one of the most populated districts in England not to be a unitary authority. It was recommended by the Banham Commission to become one in 1995, but this was vetoed by the government of the day.
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