Bromley London Borough Council

Bromley London Borough Council
Bromley London Borough Council
	Coat of arms
	Council logo
Type
Type	London borough council of the London Borough of Bromley
Leadership
Mayor of Bromley	Russell Mellor ; since 19 May 2021
Leader of the Council	Colin Smith, Conservative ; since 26 September 2017
Leader of the Opposition	Angela Wilkins, Labour
Chief Executive	Ade Adetosoye ; since December 2018
Structure
Seats	60 councillors
Political groups	Administration Conservative (50) Other parties Labour (8) Independent (2)
Length of term	Whole council elected every four years
Elections
Voting system	First past the post
Last election	3 May 2018
Next election	5 May 2022
Meeting place
	Civic Centre, Bromley
Website
	www.bromley.gov.uk

Bromley London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Bromley in Greater London, England. It is one of 32 London borough councils.

History[]

There have previously been a number of local authorities responsible for the Bromley area. The current local authority was first elected in 1964, a year before formally coming into its powers and prior to the creation of the London Borough of Bromley on 1 April 1965. Bromley replaced the Municipal Borough of Bromley, the Municipal Borough of Beckenham, Penge Urban District, Orpington Urban District and the Chislehurst part of Chislehurst and Sidcup Urban District.^[1]

It was envisaged that through the London Government Act 1963, Bromley as a London local authority would share power with the Greater London Council. The split of powers and functions meant that the Greater London Council was responsible for "wide area" services such as fire, ambulance, flood prevention, and refuse disposal; with the local authorities responsible for "personal" services such as social care, libraries, cemeteries and refuse collection. As an outer London borough council it has been an education authority since 1965. This arrangement lasted until 1986 when Bromley London Borough Council gained responsibility for some services that had been provided by the Greater London Council, such as waste disposal. Since 2000 the Greater London Authority has taken some responsibility for highways and planning control from the council, but within the English local government system the council remains a "most purpose" authority in terms of the available range of powers and functions.^[2]

In August 2015 Bromley Council was criticised over a 40-foot "stinking pile of rubbish" abandoned next to people's homes. The rubbish had been there for four years but, according to the Telegraph, little progress had been made since the council became involved in March 2015.^[3]

Powers and functions[]

The local authority derives its powers and functions from the London Government Act 1963 and subsequent legislation, and has the powers and functions of a London borough council. It sets council tax and as a billing authority also collects precepts for Greater London Authority functions and business rates.^[4] It sets planning policies which complement Greater London Authority and national policies, and decides on almost all planning applications accordingly. It is a local education authority and is also responsible for council housing, social services, libraries, waste collection and disposal, traffic, and most roads and environmental health.^[5]

Political control[]

Since the first election to the council in 1964 political control of the council has been held by the following parties:

Party in control	Years
Conservative	1964 - 1998
No overall control	1998 - 2001
Conservative	2001–present

Notes[]

^ Youngs, Frederic (1979). Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England. I: Southern England. London: Royal Historical Society. ISBN 0-901050-67-9.
^ Leach, Steve (1998). Local Government Reorganisation: The Review and its Aftermath. Routledge. p. 107. ISBN 978-0714648590.
^ Victoria Ward (17 August 2015). "Rat-infested rubbish mountain that towers over homes causes misery for families". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 17 August 2015.^{[dead link]}
^ "Council Tax and Business Rates Billing Authorities". Council Tax Rates. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
^ "Local Plan Responses – within and outside London". Mayor of London. Retrieved 9 April 2020.

External links[]

London Borough of Bromley website

[1] Youngs, Frederic (1979). Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England. I: Southern England. London: Royal Historical Society. ISBN 0-901050-67-9.

[2] Leach, Steve (1998). Local Government Reorganisation: The Review and its Aftermath. Routledge. p. 107. ISBN 978-0714648590.

[3] Victoria Ward (17 August 2015). "Rat-infested rubbish mountain that towers over homes causes misery for families". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 17 August 2015.^{[dead link]}

[4] "Council Tax and Business Rates Billing Authorities". Council Tax Rates. Retrieved 8 April 2020.

[5] "Local Plan Responses – within and outside London". Mayor of London. Retrieved 9 April 2020.

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v t Local authorities in London
Regional	Greater London Authority
City of London	Corporation of London Inner Temple Middle Temple
London borough councils	Barking and Dagenham Barnet Bexley Brent Bromley Camden Croydon Ealing Enfield Greenwich Hackney Hammersmith and Fulham Haringey Harrow Havering Hillingdon Hounslow Islington Kensington and Chelsea Kingston upon Thames Lambeth Lewisham Merton Newham Redbridge Richmond upon Thames Southwark Sutton Tower Hamlets Waltham Forest Wandsworth Westminster