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The mayor of London is the chief executive of the
Greater London Authority The Greater London Authority (GLA), colloquially known by the Metonymy, metonym City Hall, is the Devolution in the United Kingdom, devolved Regions of England, regional governance body of Greater London, England. It consists of two political ...
. The role was created in 2000 after the Greater London devolution referendum in 1998, and was the first directly elected mayor in the United Kingdom. The current mayor is
Sadiq Khan Sir Sadiq Aman Khan (, ; born 8 October 1970) is a British politician serving as Mayor of London since 2016. He was previously Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Tooting (UK Parliament constituency), Tooting ...
, who took office on 9 May 2016. The position was held by
Ken Livingstone Kenneth Robert Livingstone (born 17 June 1945) is an English former politician who served as the Leader of the Greater London Council (GLC) from 1981 until the council was Local Government Act 1985, abolished in 1986, and as Mayor of Londo ...
from the creation of the role on 4 May 2000 until he was defeated in May 2008 by
Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...
, who then also served two terms before being succeeded by Khan. The mayor is scrutinised by the
London Assembly The London Assembly is a 25-member 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 supermajority, to amend the Mayor's annual budget and to reject t ...
and, supported by their Mayoral Cabinet, directs the entirety of London, including the
City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...
(for which there is also the
Lord Mayor of the City of London Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...
). Each of the 32
London Borough The London boroughs are the current 32 districts of England, local authority districts that together with the City of London make up the administrative area of Greater London, England; each is governed by a London borough council. The present ...
s also has a ceremonial mayor or, in Croydon, Hackney,
Lewisham Lewisham ( ) is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the Historic counties of England, historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified in ...
,
Newham The London Borough of Newham () is a London boroughs, London borough created in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. It covers an area previously administered by the Essex county boroughs of County Borough of West Ham, West Ham and County ...
and Tower Hamlets, an elected mayor.


Background

The
Greater London Council 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. The GLC was dissolved in 198 ...
, the elected government for
Greater London Greater London is an administrative area in England, coterminous with the London region, containing most of the continuous urban area of London. It contains 33 local government districts: the 32 London boroughs, which form a Ceremonial count ...
, was abolished in 1986 by the
Local Government Act 1985 The Local Government Act 1985 (c. 51) is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom. Its main effect was to abolish the six county councils of the metropolitan county, metropolitan counties that had been set up by the Local Government Act 1972, ...
. Strategic functions were split off to various joint arrangements. Londoners voted in a referendum in 1998 to create a new governance structure for Greater London. The directly elected mayor of London was created by the Greater London Authority Act 1999 in 2000 as part of the reforms.


Elections

The mayor is elected by the
first-past-the-post First-past-the-post (FPTP)—also called choose-one, first-preference plurality (FPP), or simply plurality—is a single-winner voting rule. Voters mark one candidate as their favorite, or First-preference votes, first-preference, and the cand ...
system for a fixed term of four years, with elections taking place in May. Prior to the Elections Act 2022, the supplementary vote method was used. There are no limits on the number of terms a mayor may serve. The mayor is elected by the largest single-member electorate in the United Kingdom. As with most elected posts in the United Kingdom, there is a deposit (in this case of £10,000), which is returnable on the candidate's winning of at least 5% of votes cast.


Most recent election

The most recent London mayoral election was held on 2 May 2024. The results of the election were announced on 4 May 2024. Sadiq Khan was re-elected as mayor and became the first to be elected for 3 terms, beating the Conservative Susan Hall.


List of mayors


Timeline

;Timeline


Powers and functions

Most powers are derived from the Greater London Authority Act 1999, with additional functions coming from the
Greater London Authority Act 2007 The Greater London Authority Act 2007 (c 24) is an Act of Parliament, Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It gave additional powers to the Greater London Authority, the London Assembly and the Mayor of London, which had been created b ...
, the
Localism Act 2011 The Localism Act 2011 (c. 20) is an Act of Parliament that changes the powers of local government in England. The aim of the act is to facilitate the devolution of decision-making powers from central government control to individuals and commun ...
and
Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 (c. 13) is an Act of Parliament, Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It transfers the control of police forces from police authorities to elected Police and Crime Commissioners. The Eng ...
. The mayor's main functions are: *Strategic planning, including housing, waste management, the environment and production of the
London Plan The London Plan is the statutory spatial development strategy for the Greater London area in the United Kingdom that is written by the Mayor of London and published by the Greater London Authority. It is updated from time to time. The regio ...
*Refuse or permit planning permission on strategic grounds *Transport policy, delivered by functional body
Transport for London Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom. TfL is the successor organization of the London Passenger Transport Board, which was established in 1933, and His ...
*Fire and emergency planning, delivered by functional body
London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority The London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA) was a functional body of the Greater London Authority (GLA) from 2000 to 2018. It was established with the Greater London Authority by the Greater London Authority Act 1999. It replaced the ...
*Policing and crime policy, delivered by functional body Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (before 2012 by functional body Metropolitan Police Authority). The Metropolitan Police has a structure different to most others across the country, reporting to the Mayor of London instead of a police and crime commissioner. *Economic development, delivered directly by the Greater London Authority through subsidiary company GLA Land and Property (before 2012 by functional body
London Development Agency The London Development Agency (LDA) was from July 2000 until 2012 the regional development agency for the Greater London, London region in England. A functional body of the Greater London Authority, its purpose was to drive sustainable economic ...
) *Power to create development corporations, such as the London Legacy Development Corporation The remaining local government functions are performed by the
London borough council The London boroughs are the current 32 local authority districts that together with the City of London make up the administrative area of Greater London, England; each is governed by a London borough council. The present London boroughs were ...
s. There is some overlap; for example, the borough councils are responsible for waste management, but the mayor is required to produce a waste management strategy. In 2010, Johnson launched an initiative in partnership with the Multi-academy Trust AET to transform schools across London. This led to the establishment of London Academies Enterprise Trust ( LAET) which was intended to be a group of ten academies, but it only reached a group of four before the mayor withdrew it in 2013. The mayor is a member of the Mayoral Council for England and the Council of the Nations and Regions. The following is a table comparing power over services of the boroughs to the GLA and mayor.


Initiatives


Ken Livingstone

Initiatives taken by
Ken Livingstone Kenneth Robert Livingstone (born 17 June 1945) is an English former politician who served as the Leader of the Greater London Council (GLC) from 1981 until the council was Local Government Act 1985, abolished in 1986, and as Mayor of Londo ...
as Mayor of London included the
London congestion charge The London congestion charge is a fee charged on most cars and motor vehicles being driven within the Congestion Charge Zone (CCZ) in Central London between 7:00am and 6:00pm Monday to Friday, and between 12:00noon and 6:00pm Saturday and Su ...
on private vehicles using city centre London on weekdays, the creation of the London Climate Change Agency, the London Energy Partnership and the founding of the international Large Cities Climate Leadership Group, now known as C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group. The congestion charge led to many new buses being introduced across London. In August 2003, Livingstone oversaw the introduction of the
Oyster card The Oyster card is a Payment#Types_and_methods_of_payment, payment method for public transport in London and some surrounding areas. A standard Oyster card is a blue ISO/IEC 7810, credit-card-sized Stored-value card, stored-value contactless ...
electronic ticketing system for
Transport for London Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom. TfL is the successor organization of the London Passenger Transport Board, which was established in 1933, and His ...
services. Livingstone supported the withdrawal of the vintage
AEC Routemaster The AEC Routemaster is a Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout, front-engined double-decker bus that was designed by London Transport Executive, London Transport and built by the Associated Equipment Company (AEC) and Park Royal Vehicles. The ...
buses from regular service in London. Livingstone introduced the London Partnerships Register which was a voluntary scheme without legal force for same sex couples to register their partnership, and paved the way for the introduction by the United Kingdom Parliament of
civil partnership A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, primarily created to provide legal recognition for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage, with ch ...
s and later still,
Same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...
. Unlike civil partnerships, the London Partnerships Register was open to heterosexual couples who favour a public commitment other than marriage. As Mayor of London, Livingstone was a supporter of the London Olympics in 2012, ultimately winning the bid to host the Games in 2005. Livingstone encouraged sport in London; especially when sport could be combined with helping charities like The London Marathon and 10K charity races. Livingstone, in a mayoral election debate on the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
's '' Question Time'' in April 2008, stated that the primary reason he supported the Olympic bid was to secure funding for the redevelopment of the East End of London. In July 2007, he brought the Tour de France cycle race to London.


Boris Johnson

In May 2008,
Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He wa ...
introduced a new transport safety initiative to put 440 high visibility police officers in and around bus stations. A ban on alcohol on underground, and Docklands Light Railway, tram services and stations across the capital was introduced. Also in May 2008, he announced the closure of '' The Londoner'' newspaper, saving approximately £2.9 million. A percentage of this saving was to be spent on planting 10,000 new street trees. In 2010, he extended the coverage of
Oyster card The Oyster card is a Payment#Types_and_methods_of_payment, payment method for public transport in London and some surrounding areas. A standard Oyster card is a blue ISO/IEC 7810, credit-card-sized Stored-value card, stored-value contactless ...
electronic ticketing to all National Rail overground train services. Also in 2010, he opened a cycle hire scheme (originally sponsored by
Barclays Barclays PLC (, occasionally ) is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services ...
, now Santander) with 5,000 bicycles available for hire across London. Although initiated by his predecessor,
Ken Livingstone Kenneth Robert Livingstone (born 17 June 1945) is an English former politician who served as the Leader of the Greater London Council (GLC) from 1981 until the council was Local Government Act 1985, abolished in 1986, and as Mayor of Londo ...
, the scheme rapidly acquired the nickname of "Boris Bikes". Johnson withdrew the recently introduced high-speed high-capacity " bendy buses" from service in 2011 which had been bought by Livingstone, and he instead supported the development of the
New Routemaster The New Routemaster, originally referred to as the New Bus for London and colloquially as the Borismaster or Boris Bus, is a low-floor Hybrid electric bus, hybrid diesel–electric double-decker bus operated in London, England. Designed by Tho ...
which entered service the next year. In 2011, Boris Johnson set up the Outer London Fund of £50 million designed to help facilitate improve local high streets. Areas in London were given the chance to submit proposals for two tranches of funding. Successful bids for Phase 1 included Enfield, Muswell Hill and Bexley town centre. The recipients of phase 2 funding were still to be announced . In January 2013, he appointed journalist Andrew Gilligan as the first Cycling Commissioner for London. In March 2013, Johnson announced £1 billion of investment in infrastructure to make cycling safer in London, including a East to West segregated 'Crossrail for bikes'. At the
General Election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...
of 7 May 2015, Johnson was elected MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip, He continued to serve as mayor until the mayoral election in May 2016, when
Sadiq Khan Sir Sadiq Aman Khan (, ; born 8 October 1970) is a British politician serving as Mayor of London since 2016. He was previously Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Tooting (UK Parliament constituency), Tooting ...
was elected.


Sadiq Khan

Sadiq Khan Sir Sadiq Aman Khan (, ; born 8 October 1970) is a British politician serving as Mayor of London since 2016. He was previously Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Tooting (UK Parliament constituency), Tooting ...
introduced the 'bus hopper' fare on TfL buses, which allows passengers to board a second bus within one hour for the same fare. Under Khan, paper, coin and cash transactions became obsolete. The
Oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but no ...
system was expanded to include debit and credit cards. This initiative was started under his predecessor, Johnson. Upon election, Khan outlined a vision to make London the "greenest city" by investing in walking and
cycling infrastructure Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other types of bicycle pedal, pedal-driven human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the ...
while reducing polluting vehicles. In 2019, the "
Ultra Low Emission Zone The Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) is an area in London, England, where an European emission standards, emissions standard based charge is applied to non-compliant road vehicles. Plans were announced by London Mayor Boris Johnson in 2015 for ...
" scheme was launched which taxes highly polluting vehicles in its covered territory. London declared itself the world's first "National Park City" (effective from July 2019), reflecting its unusually high amount of green space for a city of its size.


Extended term

The Government postponed all elections due in May 2020, including for the mayor of London, for one year due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. Khan had therefore served a term in office of five years rather than four, which ended in May 2021. He was re-elected in 2021 for a shortened three-year term, defeating the Conservative candidate Shaun Bailey.


See also

* Foreign relations of the Mayor of London * Leaders of the Greater London Council *


Notes


References


External links


Page about the process of nomination
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mayor Of London Local government in London
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
2000 establishments in England