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69-669: Westminster City Council is the local authority for the City of Westminster in Greater London , England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in London . The council has been under Labour majority control since 2022. Full council meetings are generally held at Westminster Council House , also known as Marylebone Town Hall, and the council has its main offices at Westminster City Hall on Victoria Street. Whilst an important centre of royal authority from Saxon times, Westminster

138-505: A Mayor of London and 25-member London Assembly . The first mayoral and assembly elections took place in 2000. The former Leader of the Greater London Council , Ken Livingstone , served as the inaugural Mayor, until he was defeated by future Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2008 . The incumbent, Sadiq Khan , was first elected in 2016 . The Mayor's functions include chairing Transport for London , holding

207-541: A Westminster parliamentary borough (constituency). The Anglican Diocese of Westminster was short-lived, being absorbed back into the Diocese of London in 1550. Despite having no borough corporation and having ceased to be the seat of a diocese, Westminster continued to be described as a city. In 1585 the Westminster Court of Burgesses was established to administer certain judicial powers in an area known as

276-490: A local education authority in 1990 when the Inner London Education Authority was dissolved. In the late 1980s, the under the leadership of Conservative councillor Shirley Porter , the council was involved in the homes for votes scandal . In marginal wards, the council moved the homeless elsewhere, and sold council homes to groups who were more likely to vote Conservative. On investigation,

345-640: A portcullis as the main charge, which now forms the crest . The following people and military units have received the Freedom of the City of Westminster. Local government in England Civil parishes are the lowest tier of local government, and primarily exist in rural and smaller urban areas. The responsibilities of parish councils are limited and generally consist of providing and maintaining public spaces and facilities. Local authorities cover

414-530: A borough council. The larger London borough called the City of Westminster and its council were created under the London Government Act 1963 , with the first election held in 1964 . For its first year the council acted as a shadow authority alongside the area's three outgoing authorities, being the metropolitan borough councils of Westminster, Paddington and St Marylebone. The new council formally came into its powers on 1 April 1965, at which point

483-628: A car or van, 6.0%; work mainly at or from home, 5.5%; bicycle, 3.1%; train, 3.0%. Westminster Children's Services administers many primary and secondary schools. In addition, there are several state-funded faith schools, primarily Church of England (CE), and Roman Catholic (RC), but Christian non-denominational (ND) schools are also in the borough, and there are several non-profit-making junior and senior independent schools . The city operates two reference libraries; Westminster Reference Library and Marylebone Information Service. Westminster Reference Library holds several special collections: of which

552-483: A county council and a district council, which would share local authority functions. In May 2022, 21 non-metropolitan county councils and 164 non-metropolitan district councils remain. These are better known as simply county councils and district councils. The Local Government Act 1985 also abolished metropolitan county councils, but there are still 36 metropolitan district councils as of May 2022. There are also (as of April 2023) 62 unitary authorities. These carry out

621-547: A devolution deal, which are usually reserved to combined authorities for additional functions and funding. And, like some combined authorities and parish councils, local authorities do have a general power of competence . Separate to combined authorities, two or more local authorities can also work together through joint boards (for legally-required services: fire, public transport and waste disposal), joint committees (voluntarily) or through contracting out and agency arrangements. The Greater London Authority Act 1999 established

690-476: A large part of central London , including most of the West End , such as the major shopping areas around Oxford Street , Regent Street , Piccadilly and Bond Street , and the entertainment district of Soho . Many London landmarks are within the borough, including Buckingham Palace , Westminster Abbey , Whitehall , Westminster Cathedral , 10 Downing Street , and Trafalgar Square . The borough also has

759-515: A local authority. Ten currently exist, with more planned. Parish councils form the lowest tier of local government and govern civil parishes . They may also be called a 'community council', 'neighbourhood council', 'village council', 'town council' or (if the parish holds city status) 'city council', but these names are stylistic and do not change their responsibilities. As of December 2021 there are 10,475 parishes in England, but they do not cover

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828-433: A number of major parks and open spaces , including Hyde Park , and most of Regent's Park . Away from central London the borough also includes various inner suburbs, including St John's Wood , Maida Vale , Bayswater , Belgravia and Pimlico . The borough had a population of 204,300 at the 2021 census. The original settlement of Westminster was historically a separate urban area to the west of London, growing up around

897-633: A parish council must meet certain conditions of quality. Civil parishes developed in the nineteenth century and were based on the Church of England's parishes , which until then had both ecclesiastical and local government functions; parish councils were created by the Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73). The ecclesiastical parishes continue to exist, but neither they nor their parochial church councils have any local government role. There are 317 local authorities covering

966-425: A shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until it came into its powers on 1 April 1965. Political control of the council since 1965 has been as follows: The role of Lord Mayor of Westminster is largely ceremonial. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council . The leaders since 1965 have been: Following the 2022 election the composition of the council was: The next election

1035-561: A whole has limited revenue-raising powers compared to other G7 countries. In the 20th century, local authorities found that the costs of providing services exceeded the revenues raised from local taxes and so grants from the UK Government (specifically the Treasury ) gradually increased. However, UK Government grants were cut by 40% in real terms between the financial years 2009/10 and 2019/20, although grant income did grow due to

1104-527: Is Westminster City Council . To the east, Westminster borders the City of London , with the boundary marked by Temple Bar . Other neighbouring boroughs (anti-clockwise from north-east) are Camden , Brent , Kensington and Chelsea , Wandsworth and Lambeth , the latter two being separated from Westminster by the River Thames . Charing Cross in Westminster is the notional centre of London, being

1173-439: 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. The council has been under Labour majority control since 2022. Prior to that the council had been under Conservative majority control since the creation of the current authority in 1965. The first election was held in 1964, initially operating as

1242-481: Is a public interest in disclosing information about local government investments which will generally outweigh any concerns about whether disclosure could affect an investment's performance or be protected by confidentiality requirements. Local authorities cannot borrow money to finance day-to-day spending and so must rely on yearly income or reserves for this type of expenditure, although they can borrow to fund capital expenditure. Local government in England as

1311-454: Is at 14 St James's Square . Many countries' embassies or High Commissions are in Westminster. The current Westminster coat of arms was given by an official grant on 2 September 1964. Westminster had other arms before, which had a chief identical to the chief in the present arms. The symbols in the lower two thirds of the shield stand for former municipalities now merged with the city, Paddington and St Marylebone. The original arms had

1380-517: Is clear both practically and democratically that the overly centralised arrangements of government in England are problematic" and that reform was also needed of funding structures. As of May 2024, the various combined authorities, county, district, and sui generis councils formed an administrative hierarchy as shown in the table below. Unitary authorities are legally either district councils which also perform county functions or county councils which also perform district functions; they therefore straddle

1449-494: Is due in 2026. Since the last boundary changes in 2022 the council has comprised 54 councillors representing 18 wards , with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held every four years. The council has its main offices at Westminster City Hall on Victoria Street in the Victoria area. It was designed by Burnet Tait & Partners on a speculative basis, and completed in 1966. Full council meetings are held in

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1518-462: Is the regional authority for Greater London , with responsibility for transport, policing, fire and rescue, development and strategic planning. Combined authorities are statutory bodies which allow two or more local authorities to voluntarily pool responsibilities and negotiate a devolution deal with the UK Government for the area they cover, giving it powers beyond those typically held by

1587-563: The COVID-19 pandemic . Local government receives two types of grants: the Revenue Support Grant, which can be spent on any service according to the wishes of the local government body in question, and specific grants, which are usually 'ring fenced' to specifically defined service areas. Council tax was introduced in 1993 to replace the ' poll tax '. It is a domestic property tax, based on eight bands (A to H) depending on

1656-603: The City and Liberty of Westminster . From 1856 the area was also governed by the Metropolitan Board of Works , which was established to provide services across the metropolis of London. In 1889 the Metropolitan Board of Works' area was made the County of London . From 1856 until 1900 the lower tier of local government within the metropolis comprised various parish vestries and district boards . Within

1725-717: The Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police and London Fire Commissioner to account and keeping strategies up to date, including the London Plan . Meanwhile, it is the Assembly's role to regularly hold the Mayor and their key advisers to account and it can also amend the budget or a strategy by a two-thirds majority, though this has not ever happened as of March 2022. Combined authorities can be created at

1794-548: The Localism Act 2011 . In every area, one local authority acts as the billing authority (the district council in two-tier areas), which prepares and collects council tax bills. Other parts of local government (like county councils in two-tier areas, police and crime commissioners, fire authorities, parish councils and combined authorities) act as precepting authorities, which notify the relevant billing authority of their decision on council tax and later receive this money from

1863-594: The London Assembly , the borough forms part of the West Central constituency. The following table shows the ethnic group of respondents in the 1991 to 2021 censuses in Westminster. The borough ranks highest on one standard criteria in analysing housing supply and demand, the proportion of private rented accommodation relative to other types of housing in England. A study in 2017 by Trust for London and The New Policy Institute found that Westminster has

1932-634: The Metropolitan Borough of Paddington , and the parish of the St Marylebone became the Metropolitan Borough of St Marylebone . The various territories within the old City and Liberty of Westminster became the Metropolitan Borough of Westminster . The new boroughs came into being on 1 November 1900; a few days ahead of that a royal charter was issued conferring city status on the new borough of Westminster from its creation. The Court of Burgesses, which had ceded most practical powers to

2001-472: The minster church of Westminster Abbey. Westminster was an important centre of royal authority from Saxon times, and was declared a city in 1540. It was gradually absorbed into the urban area of London, but London's official city boundaries remained unchanged, covering just the area called the City of London , broadly corresponding to the medieval walled city. From the 19th century some metropolis -wide administrative bodies were introduced. The County of London

2070-636: The sui generis City of London Corporation . The other sui generis local authorities are the Council of the Isles of Scilly , Middle Temple and Inner Temple . Outside Greater London and the Isles of Scilly , the Local Government Act 1972 divided England into metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties, which would have one county council and multiple district councils each. That meant that each area would be covered by two tiers of local authorities - both

2139-535: The City and Liberty of Westminster, the three parishes of St George Hanover Square , St James Piccadilly and St Martin-in-the-Fields were governed by their vestries , whilst the parishes covering the central part of Westminster formed the Westminster District and the parishes and territories adjoining the border with the City of London formed the Strand District . Beyond the liberty to

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2208-510: The City of Westminster. Mayfair and St James's within the City of Westminster also have a large concentration of hedge fund and private equity funds. The West End is known as the Theatre District and is home to many of the leading performing arts businesses. Soho and its adjoining areas house a concentration of media and creative companies. Oxford Street is a busy shopping destination. The City of Westminster contains some of

2277-573: The Electoral Commission has recommended that all authorities use whole council elections every 4 years. Local authorities have a choice of executive arrangements under the Local Government Act 2000 : mayor and cabinet executive, leader and cabinet executive, a committee system or bespoke arrangements approved by the Secretary of State. As of April 2023, just 15 local authorities have directly-elected mayors . Some functions are just

2346-517: The Greater London Council was responsible for "wide area" services such as fire, ambulance, flood prevention , and refuse disposal ; with the boroughs (including Westminster) responsible for "personal" services such as social care, libraries, cemeteries and refuse collection . The Greater London Council was abolished in 1986 and its functions passed to the London Boroughs, with some services provided through joint committees. Westminster became

2415-527: The Labour Party as of 2024 except for Tees Valley . Each combined authority's executive consists of a representative from each of its constituent local authorities, plus (if applicable) the mayor. Functions can be devolved directly to the mayor, to the combined authority as a whole, or have a different decision-making requirement. The budget and functions of each combined authority can be vastly different, but possible functions include responsibility for

2484-637: The Secretary of State the power to provide for a directly-elected combined authority mayor . And, as of May 2022, nine out of the 10 combined authorities have mayors, including Andy Burnham in Greater Manchester and Andy Street in the West Midlands . In the 2024 local elections , new Combined Authorities were elected; they were the new York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority , North East Mayoral Combined Authority , East Midlands Combined County Authority . They are all controlled by

2553-912: The Sherlock Holmes, Arts and Business collections are the most comprehensive. In addition to the collections in Westminster Reference Library the city has two specialist libraries: the Westminster Music Library , the largest music library in the UK and the Westminster Chinese Library in the Charing Cross Library. Free City of Westminster operated public lending libraries in Westminster include: The London Library , an independent lending library funded by subscription,

2622-531: The South Coast including Clapham Junction , Sutton , Brighton , Eastbourne , Gatwick Airport ( [REDACTED] ), Guildford , Portsmouth , and Southampton . Services operated by Southern . Gatwick Airport [REDACTED] Services operated by Gatwick Express . The City of Westminster is served by 27 London Underground stations and 10 of the 11 lines. By 2009 Westminster City Council had electric vehicle charging points in 15 locations through

2691-481: The abbey and the river he built a palace, thereby guaranteeing that the seat of Government would be fixed at Westminster, and inevitably drawing power and wealth west out of the old City of London. For centuries Westminster and the City of London were geographically quite distinct. It was not until the sixteenth century that houses began to be built over the adjoining fields, eventually absorbing nearby villages such as Marylebone and Kensington , and gradually creating

2760-405: The agreement of the relevant local authorities, and under the Localism Act 2011 eligible parish councils can be granted a " general power of competence " (GPC) which allows them within certain limits the freedom to do anything an individual can do provided it is not prohibited by other legislation, as opposed to being limited to the powers explicitly granted to them by law. To be eligible for this

2829-604: The billing authority. Between financial years 2009/10 and 2021/22, council tax rates increased by 30% in real terms, in light of reduced grants from the UK Government. Business rates is a tax on business premises. It is based on the rateable value of the premises (set by the Valuation Office Agency ) and a business rate multiplier. It is set and collected by billing authorities. Reforms in 2013 now mean that local authorities keep 50% of business rate revenues raised locally. The UK Government then distributes

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2898-410: The city (13 car parks and two on-street points). Users pay an annual fee to cover administration costs to register and use the points. By 2018 there were 60 electric vehicle charging locations. In March 2011, the main forms of transport that residents used to travel to work were: underground, metro, light rail, tram, 21.0% of all residents aged 16–74; on foot, 9.3%; bus, minibus or coach, 9.3%; driving

2967-529: The council chamber of Marylebone Town Hall on Marylebone Road, built in 1920 for the former Metropolitan Borough of St Marylebone , one of the council's predecessors. City of Westminster The City of Westminster is a London borough with city status in Greater London , England. It is the site of the United Kingdom's Houses of Parliament and much of the British government . It contains

3036-761: 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. 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. It sets planning policies which complement Greater London Authority and national policies, and decides on almost all planning applications accordingly. It

3105-822: The crosses. These include Green Park , Hyde Park , Kensington Gardens , Regent's Park and St James's Park . In addition to parks and open spaces within the borough, the City owns and maintains East Finchley Cemetery and crematorium in the London Borough of Barnet . Four National Rail stations serve the City of Westminster: [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Heathrow Airport [REDACTED] Services operated by Heathrow Express and Elizabeth line ( [REDACTED] ) . [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] South London, Sussex and

3174-400: The diocese was abolished in 1550. The area was historically part of the county of Middlesex . Whilst an important centre of royal authority from Saxon times, Westminster was not formally incorporated as a borough for local government purposes until 1900. However, it was declared a city in 1540 on the elevation of Westminster Abbey to being a cathedral . From at least 1545 there was also

3243-632: The entirety of England, and are responsible for services such as education, transport, planning applications, and waste collection and disposal. In two-tier areas a non-metropolitan county council and two or more non-metropolitan district councils share responsibility for these services. In single-tier areas a unitary authority , London borough , or metropolitan borough provides all services. The City of London and Isles of Scilly have unique local authorities. The London boroughs, metropolitan boroughs, and some unitary authorities collaborate through regional authorities. The Greater London Authority (GLA)

3312-576: The financial year 2019/20, local authorities received 22% of their funding from grants, 52% from council tax and 27% from retained business rates. In the financial year 2023/24, 51% of revenue expenditure is expected to come from UK Government grants, 31% from council tax and 15% from retained business rates. Local government can also receive some money from fees and charges for the use of services, returns and interest from investments , commercial income, fixed penalty notices and capital receipts. The Information Commissioner's Office has ruled that there

3381-703: The functions of both county and district councils and have replaced two-tier local government in some areas. The creation of these first became possible under the Local Government Act 1992 , but now takes place under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 . In the 2023/24 financial year, 33% of budgeted service expenditure across local government as a whole is set to be on education , 19% on adult social care , 13% on police , 11% on children's social care and 24% on all other services. Notably, Cornwall Council has been subject to

3450-493: The lower tier of local government within the metropolis comprised various parish vestries and district boards . One such district was initially called the Westminster District , which was renamed the St Margaret and St John Combined Vestry in 1887. In 1900 the lower tier was reorganised into metropolitan boroughs , including Westminster (which inherited Westminster's city status), Paddington and St Marylebone , each with

3519-535: The most famous sites in London, including Buckingham Palace , Westminster Abbey , the Palace of Westminster (Houses of Parliament) and Big Ben . Charing Cross is the notional centre of London and the location where distances from London are measured. This custom appears to have begun with the set distances of the 12 Eleanor crosses to Lincoln, England in the north, and expanded even after destruction of most of

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3588-601: The newer authorities, was finally abolished in 1901. The modern borough was created in 1965 under the London Government Act 1963 . It was a merger of the old Paddington, St Marylebone and Westminster metropolitan boroughs, and Westminster's city status was transferred to the enlarged borough. In 1966 the city was granted the right to appoint a lord mayor . The local authority is Westminster City Council, which meets at Westminster Council House (also known as Marylebone Town Hall ) and has its main offices at Westminster City Hall on Victoria Street. Since 2000, for elections to

3657-468: The north, the two parishes of Paddington and St Marylebone were also governed by their vestries. The Westminster District was renamed the St Margaret and St John Combined Vestry in 1887, and unsuccessfully petitioned to be incorporated as a borough in 1897. In 1900 the lower tier of local government within the County of London was reorganised into metropolitan boroughs . The parish of Paddington became

3726-516: The old boroughs and their councils were abolished. In 1966 the city was granted the dignity of having a lord mayor . The council's full legal name is "The Lord Mayor and Citizens of the City of Westminster", but it is generally known as Westminster City Council. From 1965 until 1986 the council was a lower-tier authority, with upper-tier functions provided by the Greater London Council . The split of powers and functions meant that

3795-523: The people within government are unsure at times where powers and responsibility, and hence accountability, rest, this lack of clarity is magnified for individuals who have little knowledge or experience of the structures. This has the potential to leave individuals less likely to be able to access what they need from government, leaving them often unable to know who is responsible, and as a result are not properly able to hold their democratic representatives to account. The Committee also said that "[t]he evidence

3864-465: The point from which distances from London are measured. After the depopulation of Roman London in the 5th century, an Anglo Saxon agricultural and trade settlement likely developed to its west, associated with the Middle Saxons , sometimes called Lundenwic ('London village' or London port'). Over time, Lundenburh ('London fort'), the former Roman city with its still-existing Roman walls,

3933-485: The policy was ruled to be illegal, and it was revealed that some of the homeless had been rehoused in condemned accommodation. After leaving office, Porter was found guilty of wilful misconduct and ordered to repay £36.1   million; a payment of £12.3   million was eventually accepted. Since 2000 the Greater London Authority has taken some responsibility for highways and planning control from

4002-773: The relevant police force and/or fire brigade , bus franchising and spatial strategy. Lower-tier of a two-tier system. Upper-tier of a two-tier system. De facto unitary authorities since abolition of metropolitan county councils . Metropolitan county councils were abolished in 1986 and most of their functions were devolved to the metropolitan boroughs making them unitary authorities in all but name. Some combined and regional authorities may assume responsibility for policing, e.g. South Yorkshire . Some combined and regional authorities may assume responsibility for policing, e.g. Greater Manchester . In England, local authorities have three main sources of funding: UK Government grants, council tax and business rates . In

4071-478: The remaining 50% of business rate revenues according to its own judgement. It was initially planned to increase the proportion of business rates that local authorities retain to 100%, but this was indefinitely delayed in 2021. In 2022, the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee said that it had "significant concerns about the current governance arrangements for England": If

4140-527: The request of two or more local authorities. Combined authorities do not replace the local authorities in question, but can receive separate functions and funding. As of May 2022, there are 10 combined authorities covering some of England. The Secretary of State was first granted the power to create combined authorities by the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 . The Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016 gave

4209-439: The responsibility of the executive of a local authority, but local authorities must also have at least one overview and scrutiny committee to hold the executive to account. The London Government Act 1963 established 32 London borough councils. It also established the Greater London Council , covering the whole of Greater London , but this was later abolished by the Local Government Act 1985 . Greater London also includes

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4278-419: The third-highest pay inequality of the 32 London boroughs. It also has the second-least affordable private rent for low earners in London, behind only Kensington and Chelsea . In education, 82% of adults and 69% of 19-year-olds having Level 3 qualifications. The City of Westminster covers all or part of the following areas of London : Many global corporations have their global or European headquarters in

4347-411: The value of the property on 1 April 1991. Various discounts are set out in law and exist at the discretion of billing authorities. On a yearly basis, local government bodies review and consider whether to increase or decrease the level of council tax to fund their spending plans. The level at which a local authority can increase council tax each year without holding a local referendum is regulated by

4416-418: The vast Greater London that exists today. Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries abolished the abbey at Westminster, although the former abbey church is still called Westminster Abbey . The church was briefly the cathedral of the Diocese of Westminster created from part of the Diocese of London in 1540, by letters patent which also granted city status to Westminster, a status retained after

4485-560: The whole of England. There are five main types of local authorities: London borough councils , two-tier county and district councils , metropolitan district councils and unitary authorities . Some local authorities have borough , city or royal borough status, but this is purely stylistic. All local authorities are made up of councillors , who represent geographical wards . There are 7,026 wards as of December 2021. Local authorities run on four year cycles and councillors may be elected all at once, by halves or by thirds; although

4554-430: The whole of the country as many urban parishes were abolished in 1974. The only specific statutory function of parish councils, which they must do, is establishing allotments . However, there are a number of other functions given by powers in the relevant legislation, which they can do, such as providing litter bins and building bus shelters . Their statutory functions are few, but they may provide other services with

4623-559: Was created in 1889, replaced in 1965 by the larger administrative area of Greater London , which since 2000 has been led by the Mayor of London . The cities of London and Westminster retain their separate city statuses despite having long been part of the same urban area. The modern borough was created in 1965 as part of the same reforms which created Greater London, covering the area of the three former metropolitan boroughs of Westminster , Paddington and St Marylebone . The local authority

4692-416: Was not formally incorporated as a borough for local government purposes until 1900. However, it was declared a city in 1540. From 1856 the area of the modern borough was within the area governed by the Metropolitan Board of Works , which was established to provide services across the metropolis of London. In 1889 the Metropolitan Board of Works' area was made the County of London . From 1856 until 1900

4761-531: Was repopulated and Lundenwic declined, becoming pastoral and partly known as Aldwych (Aldwic—'old village'), the name of which lives on for a section of Westminster. The origins of the City of Westminster pre-date the Norman Conquest of England. In the mid-11th century, King Edward the Confessor began the construction of an abbey at Westminster, only the foundations of which survive today. Between

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