London government

Local government


The current sub-regions as defined by the Greater London Authority

The Greater London AuthorityThe Greater London Authority is based in City Hall, Southwark

The administration of London is formed of two tiers—a city-wide, strategic tier and a local tier. City-wide administration is coordinated by the Greater London Authority (GLA), while local administration is carried out by 33 smaller authorities.[1] The GLA consists of two elected components; the Mayor of London, who has executive powers, and the London Assembly, who scrutinise the mayor's decisions and can accept or reject his budget proposals each year. The headquarters of the GLA is City Hall, Southwark; the current mayor is Boris Johnson. The mayor's statutory planning strategy is published as the London Plan, which as of mid-2009 is being revised, for final publication in 2011. The local authorities are the councils of the 32 London boroughs and the City of London Corporation.[2] They are responsible for most local services, such as local planning, schools, social services, local roads and refuse collection. Certain functions, such as waste management, are provided through joint arrangements. In 2009-2010 the combined revenue expenditure by London councils and the GLA amounted to just over 22 billion ₤ (14.7 billion ₤ for the boroughs and 7.4 billion ₤ for the GLA)[3]

Policing in Greater London, with the exception of the City of London, is provided by the Metropolitan Police Force, overseen by the Metropolitan Police Authority. The City of London has its own police force – the City of London Police.[4] The British Transport Police are responsible for police services on National Rail and London Underground services in the capital.[5]

The London Fire Brigade is the statutory fire and rescue service for Greater London. It is run by the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority and is the third-largest fire service in the world.[6] National Health Service ambulance services are provided by the London Ambulance Service (LAS) NHS Trust, the largest free at the point of use emergency ambulance service in the world.[7] The London Air Ambulance charity operates in conjunction with the LAS where required. Her Majesty's Coastguard and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution operate on the River Thames.[8][9]

National government

London is the seat of the Government of the United Kingdom, which is located around the Palace of Westminster. Many government departments are located close to Parliament, particularly along Whitehall, including the Prime Minister's residence at 10 Downing Street.[10] The British Parliament is often referred to as the "Mother of Parliaments" (although this sobriquet was first applied to England itself by John Bright)[11] because it has been the model for most other parliamentary systems, and its Acts have created many other parliaments.

References

  1. ^ "About the Greater London Authority". London Government. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011. Retrieved 27 September 2008.
  2. ^ "Links to other websites — London boroughs". London Government. Archived from the original on 19 October 2007. Retrieved 27 September 2008.
  3. ^ http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/statistics/pdf/1911067.pdf
  4. ^ "Policing". Greater London Authority. Archived from the original on 21 January 2008. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  5. ^ "Areas". British Transport Police. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  6. ^ "Who we are". London Fire Brigade. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  7. ^ "About us". London Ambulance Service NHS Trust. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  8. ^ "Station list". Maritime and Coastguard Agency. 2007. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  9. ^ "Thames lifeboat service launched". BBC News. 2 January 2002. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011. Retrieved 25 August 2009.
  10. ^ "10 Downing Street — Official Website". 10 Downing Street. Archived from the original on 10 May 2008. Retrieved 26 April 2008.
  11. ^ "UK Politics: Talking Politics — The 'Mother of Parliaments'". BBC. 3 June 1998. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2008.

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