Photo: allyhook
In May 2012, Londoners have the chance to elect politicians to the offices of the Greater London Authority (usually abbreviated to GLA). As the administrative body for Greater London, the GLA plays a primarily strategic role, and is responsible for those functions which are not provided by either central government, or the London borough councils. The Labour government which introduced the GLA in 2000 was determined that the Authority ought to be streamlined and with specific, limited powers, in order that some of the problems which had arisen during previous city-wide governments could be avoided. The Greater London Authority is composed of the office of the Mayor of London, and the London Assembly. The Mayor is directly elected by those Londoners who are registered to vote, and the London Assembly is elected to hold the Mayor to account. Both the Mayor and the Members of the London Assembly are elected at the same time. The GLA has responsibility for a number of key areas, but does not itself provide front-line services; a number of ‘functional bodies’ exist to make provision in these areas, including the Metropolitan Police and Transport for London. The Mayor and the London Assembly work together to achieve overlapping goals in policy, though their mandates are different. The work of the Mayor and the Assembly is supplemented by the corporate staff of the GLA.
Further information:
- The Greater London Authority – http://www.london.gov.uk/who-runs-london/greater-london-authority
- The Greater London Authority Act 1999 (the legislative document setting out the functions, powers and responsibilities of the GLA) – http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1999/29/pdfs/ukpga_19990029_en.pdf
- The Greater London Authority Act 2007 (an Act making further provision for the GLA, beyond that contained in the GLA Act 1999) – http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2007/24/pdfs/ukpga_20070024_en.pdf
