Information about Greater London Authority

''For more coverage on London, see the .

The Greater London Authority (GLA) administers the 1579 km² (610 sq. miles) of Greater London, England, covering the 32 London boroughs and the City of London. The GLA consists of an elected Mayor and 25-member Assembly. The current Mayor of London is Ken Livingstone, who was leader of the now abolished Greater London Council (GLC) from 1981 to 1986.

Purpose

The official Greater London Authority logo

The GLA was created to improve the coordination between the London boroughs, and the Mayor of London's role is to give London a single person to represent it. The Mayor proposes policy and the GLA's budget, and makes appointments to the capital's strategic transport body (Transport for London) and economic development body (the London Development Agency).

One of the primary purposes of the London Assembly is to hold the Mayor of London to account, and to scrutinise their actions and decisions. The Assembly must also accept or amend the Mayor's budget on an annual basis.

The GLA is different from the Corporation of the City of London with its largely ceremonial Lord Mayors, which controls only the square mile of the City, London's chief financial centre. While the GLA has a modern constitution, the organisation of the City of London has barely changed since the Middle Ages and is mainly controlled by City business interests.

The GLA is based at City Hall, a new building on the south bank of the River Thames, next to Tower Bridge.

History

In 1986, the Greater London Council was abolished by the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher. Many people have surmised that the decision to abolish the GLC was made because of the existence of a high-spending left-wing Labour administration under Livingstone, although pressure for the abolition of the GLC had arisen before Mr Livingstone took over, and was largely driven by the belief among the outer London Borough councils that they could perform the functions of the GLC just as well.

On abolition, the strategic functions of the GLC transferred to bodies controlled by central government or joint boards nominated by the London Borough councils. Some of the service delivery functions were transferred down to the councils themselves. For the next 14 years there was no single elected body for the whole of London. The Labour Party never supported the abolition of the GLC and made it a policy to re-establish some form of city-wide elected authority.

The Labour party adopted a policy of a single, directly-elected Mayor (a policy first suggested by Tony Banks in 1990), together with an elected Assembly watching over the Mayor; this model, based on American cities, was partly aimed at making sure the new body resemble the erstwhile GLC as little as possible. After the Labour party won the 1997 general election, the policy was outlined in a White paper entitled A Mayor and Assembly for London (March 1998).

Simultaneously with the elections to the London Borough councils, a referendum was held on the establishment of the GLA in May 1998, which was approved with 72% of the vote. The Greater London Authority Act 1999 passed through Parliament, receiving the Royal Assent in October 1999. In a controversial election campaign, the Prime Minister at the time, Tony Blair, attempted to block Livingstone's nomination and imposed his own candidate. In reaction, Livingstone resigned from the Labour party and in March 2000, was elected as Mayor of London as an independent candidate. Following an interim period in which the Mayor and Assembly had been elected but had no powers, the GLA was formally established on 3 July 2000. That same year the Art Director Gavin Lester designed the official logo for London.

In November 2005, the government published a consultation document reviewing the powers of the GLA, making proposals for additional powers, including waste management, planning, housing, and learning and skills. [1] [2] [3]. The result of the consultation and final proposals were published by the Department for Communities and Local Government on July 13, 2006. [4]

Powers and Functions

Functional bodies

Areas which the GLA has responsibility for include transport, policing, fire and rescue, development and strategic planning.

The GLA does not directly provide any services itself. Instead, its work is carried out by four functional bodies, which come under the GLA umbrella, and work under the policy direction of the Mayor and Assembly. These functional bodies are:

Transport for London (TfL) -- Responsible for managing most aspects of London's transport system, including public transport, main roads, and traffic management, and administering the London congestion charge
The Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA) -- Responsible for overseeing the Metropolitan Police Service, which provides policing throughout Greater London
The London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA) -- Administers the London Fire Brigade and co-ordinates emergency planning.
London Development Agency (LDA) -- Promotes development across London.

Planning

The GLA is responsible for coordinating land use planning in Greater London. The mayor produces a strategic plan, the "London Plan". The individual London Borough councils are legally bound to comply with the plan. The mayor has the power to over-ride planning decisions made by the London Boroughs if they are believed to be against the interests of London as a whole.

Energy policy

London by night seen from the International Space Station

As of 2006, London generates 42 million tonnes of carbon emissions, 7% of the UK's total. 44% of this comes from housing, 28% from commercial premises, 21% from transport, and 7% from industry.^[1]

The Mayor's energy strategy^[2] plans to cut carbon emission levels by 20% by 2010 and 60% by 2050 (although achieving the first of these targets is unlikely). Measures taken to achieve this have included the creation of the London Climate Change Agency, the London Energy Partnership^[3] and the founding of the international Large Cities Climate Leadership Group.

The London Sustainable Development Commission^[4] has calculated that for housing to meet the 60% target, all new developments would have to be constructed to be carbon-neutral with immediate effect (using zero energy building techniques), in addition to cutting energy used in existing housing by 40%.

Political control

After the 2004 elections, Conservatives had the largest representation (nine members) on the Assembly, followed by seven from Labour, five Liberal Democrats, two Greens and two from One London (elected as UKIP, but subsequently changed allegiance).

After Livingstone's re-election as a Labour Mayor, the Labour Assembly members declared that they did not consider it appropriate for them, being of the same political party, to hold him to account. This resulted in the Tories and Liberal Democrats agreeing to alternate the Chairmanship and Deputy Chairmanship of the GLA and of some of its committees, between them. This agreement does not extend to policy matters.

References

1. ^ "London - planning for climate change", London Climate Change Agency. URL accessed 20 August 2006.
2. ^ "Mayor's Energy Strategy", Mayor of London. URL accessed 20 August 2006.
3. ^ London Energy Partnership. URL accessed 20 August 2006.
4. ^ London Sustainable Development Commission. URL accessed 20 August 2006.

External links

The GLA's website
About the GLA - Website detailing the powers of the GLA
Greater London Authority Review, 2005-06 - House of Commons Library Standard Note
Citymayors.com profile page on GLA history
MayorWatch.co.uk Independent guide to London Government

History of local government in London
Metropolitan Board of Works (MBW) 1855 - 1889 London County Council (LCC) 1889 - 1965 Greater London Council (GLC) 1965 - 1986 Mayor of London and the London Assembly of the Greater London Authority (GLA) 2000 +

• • [ e] Part of a of articles on the History of London

Evolution	Londinium Lundenwic City of London City of Westminster County of London Greater London

Local government	Metropolitan Board of Works London County Council Greater London Council Greater London Authority London Assembly Mayor of London

Events	Peasants' Revolt Black Death Great Plague Great Fire of London The Great Stink The Great Exhibition The Blitz Swinging London The London Plan 7/7 bombings Olympic Games (1908 1948 2012)

Structures	St. Paul's Cathedral Tower of London Baynard's Castle Westminster Hall London Bridge Westminster Abbey The Monument

City of London	Corporation of London Lord Mayor of London Guildhall Livery Companies Lord Mayor's Show Bank of England

Services	Bow Street Runners Metropolitan Police Service London sewerage system

Greater London is the top-level administrative subdivision covering London, England. The administrative area was created in 1965 and covers the City of London and 32 London boroughs. Its area also forms the London region of England and the London European Parliament constituency.
..... Click the link for more information.

Motto
Dieu et mon droit (French)
"God and my right"
Anthem
No official anthem specific to England — the anthem of the United Kingdom is "God Save the Queen".
..... Click the link for more information.

London boroughs. Twelve of these plus the City of London constitute Inner London, while twenty others constitute Outer London.

Map

City of London †
City of Westminster
Kensington and Chelsea
Hammersmith and Fulham

..... Click the link for more information.

For London as a whole, see the main article London.

For wider coverage, visit the .

City of London

Coat of arms
Motto: Domine dirige nos Latin: Lord, guide us
..... Click the link for more information.

Mayor of London is an elected politician in London. The role, created in 2000, was the first directly-elected mayor in the United Kingdom. The Mayor of London is also referred to as the London Mayor
..... Click the link for more information.

London Assembly is an elected body, part of the Greater London Authority, that scrutinises the activities of the Mayor of London and has the power, with a two-thirds majority, to amend the Mayor's annual budget.
..... Click the link for more information.

Kenneth Robert Livingstone (born June 17, 1945) is a British politician who became Mayor of London on the creation of the post in 2000.

He was previously Leader of the Greater London Council from 1981 until it was abolished in 1986.
..... Click the link for more information.

The Greater London Council (GLC) was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council (LCC) which had covered a much smaller area.
..... Click the link for more information.

Transport for London

Local Government body
Founded Greater London Authority Act 1999
Headquarters Greater London

Key people Mayor of London / GLA
Website tfl.gov.
..... Click the link for more information.

London Development Agency (LDA) is the Regional Development Agency for Greater London, England. It is a functional body of the Greater London Authority. Its purpose is to promote London's economy.
..... Click the link for more information.

For London as a whole, see the main article London.

For wider coverage, visit the .

City of London

Coat of arms
Motto: Domine dirige nos Latin: Lord, guide us
..... Click the link for more information.

City Hall is the headquarters of the Greater London Authority and the Mayor of London. It stands on the south bank of the River Thames near Tower Bridge. Designed by Norman Foster, it opened in July 2002.
..... Click the link for more information.

Thames

The Thames in London

Country | England
Regions | Gloucestershire,Oxfordshire,Berkshire,Buckinghamshire,Surrey,Greater London,Kent

..... Click the link for more information.

Tower Bridge is a combined bascule and suspension bridge in London, England over the River Thames. It is close to the Tower of London, which gives it its name. It has become an iconic symbol of London and is sometimes mistakenly called London Bridge, though London Bridge is in fact
..... Click the link for more information.

19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1950s 1960s 1970s - 1980s - 1990s 2000s 2010s
1983 1984 1985 - 1986 - 1987 1988 1989

Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI
..... Click the link for more information.

Conservative Party

Leader David Cameron

Founded Historical 1671, Modern 1830
Headquarters 30 Millbank, London SW1

Political Ideology Conservatism
Liberal conservatism
Political Position Centre-right

..... Click the link for more information.

Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, LG, OM, PC, FRS (née Roberts; born 13 October 1925) served as British Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990 and leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 until 1990, being the first and to date only woman to hold either post.
..... Click the link for more information.

Labour Party

Leader Gordon Brown

Founded February 27, 1900
Headquarters 39 Victoria Street
London, SW1H 0HA

Political Ideology Democratic socialism (Official Position)
Social Democracy
Third Way

..... Click the link for more information.

London boroughs. Twelve of these plus the City of London constitute Inner London, while twenty others constitute Outer London.

Map

City of London †
City of Westminster
Kensington and Chelsea
Hammersmith and Fulham

..... Click the link for more information.

20th century - 21st century
1960s 1970s 1980s - 1990s - 2000s 2010s 2020s
1987 1988 1989 - 1990 - 1991 1992 1993

Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar).
..... Click the link for more information.

Motto
"In God We Trust" (since 1956)
"E Pluribus Unum" ("From Many, One"; Latin, traditional)
Anthem
..... Click the link for more information.

This article or section is written like a personal reflection or and may require .
Please [ improve this article] by rewriting this article or section in an . (, talk)

1987 election • MPs
1992 election • MPs
1997 election
..... Click the link for more information.

A white paper is an authoritative report. White papers are used to educate customers, collect leads for a company or help people make decisions. They can also be a government report outlining policy.
..... Click the link for more information.

19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1960s 1970s 1980s - 1990s - 2000s 2010s 2020s
1995 1996 1997 - 1998 - 1999 2000 2001

Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII
..... Click the link for more information.

The London referendum of 1998 was a referendum held in the Greater London area on Thursday, May 7, 1998 asking whether there was support for the creation of the Greater London Authority, consisting of a directly elected Mayor of London and a separately elected London Assembly.
..... Click the link for more information.

Acts of Parliament of predecessor
states to the United Kingdom
Acts of English Parliament to 1601
Acts of English Parliament to 1641
Acts and Ordinances (Interregnum) to 1660
Acts of English Parliament to 1699
Acts of English Parliament to 1706
..... Click the link for more information.