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 1986 by the Local Government Act 1985 and its powers were devolved to the London boroughs and other entities. A new administrative body, known as the Greater London Authority (GLA), was established in 2000.
Background
In 1957 a Royal Commission on Local Government in Greater London had been set up under Sir Edwin Herbert to consider the local government arrangements in the London area.
It reported in 1960, recommending the creation of 52 new London boroughs as the basis for local government. It further recommended that the LCC be replaced by a weaker strategic authority, with responsibility for public transport, road schemes, housing development and regeneration. The Greater London Group, a research centre of academics within the London School of Economics, also had a significant effort on the commission's report and the eventual creation of the GLC.
Most of the commission's recommendations were accepted, but the number of new boroughs was reduced to 32. Greater London covered the whole County of London and most of Middlesex, plus parts of Essex, Kent, and Surrey, a small part of Hertfordshire and the independent county boroughs of Croydon (geographically in Surrey) and East Ham and West Ham (both in Essex).
Some areas on the boundaries of the area recommended by the Herbert Commission, fearing increased local taxation, fought successfully not to come under the new Greater London Council, notably the urban districts of Chigwell in Essex; and Sunbury-on-Thames, Staines and Potters Bar in Middlesex. Other areas recommended for inclusion that were never part of Greater London included Epsom and Ewell, Caterham and Warlingham, Esher, and Weybridge.
Creation
The GLC was established on 1 April 1965 by the London Government Act 1963, which sought to create a new body covering more of London rather than just the inner part of the conurbation, additionally including and empowering newly created London boroughs within the overall administrative structure.
Within the new Greater London administrative area the council replaced Essex County Council, Hertfordshire County Council, Kent County Council, London County Council, Middlesex County Council and the councils of the county boroughs of Croydon, East Ham and West Ham.
GLC councillors elected for Inner London electoral divisions (the former County of London) became ex officio members of the new Inner London Education Authority, which took over the LCC responsibility for education. By contrast in Outer London, which was the rest of Greater London, the 20 London borough councils each became a local education authority, akin to a county council or county borough in the rest of England.
Powers
The GLC was responsible for running strategic services such as the fire service, emergency planning, waste disposal and flood prevention. The GLC shared responsibility with the London boroughs for providing roads, housing, city planning and leisure services. It had a very limited role in direct service provision with most functions the responsibility of the London boroughs. The GLC did not take control of public transport from the London Transport Board until 1970 and lost control to London Regional Transport in 1984.
Under the 1963 Act, the GLC was required to produce a Greater London Development Plan. The plan included in its wide-ranging remit: population changes, employment, housing, pollution, transport, roads, the central area, growth and development areas, urban open spaces and the urban landscape, public services and utilities and planning standards. The plan included the comprehensive redevelopment of Covent Garden and creating a central London motorway loop. The plan was subject to an Inquiry which lasted from July 1970 until May 1972. The campaign to save Covent Garden along with various opposition on other matters largely derailed the plan.
According to one observer:
Composition and political control
thumb|Council Chamber of the GLC, from the majority benches
Each of the six GLC elections was won by the leading national opposition party, with the party in government nationally coming second in the GLC elections.
The first GLC election was on 9 April 1964. Each of the new boroughs elected a number of representatives under the bloc vote system. Despite Conservative hopes, the first GLC consisted of 64 Labour and 36 Conservative councillors
At the next election in 1967 the unpopularity of the national Labour government produced a massive Conservative victory with 82 seats, to Labour's 18.
Elections to the GLC
The first election was held on 9 April 1964, a year before the creation of the council. Subsequent elections were held every three years for a three-year term in 1967, 1970 and 1973. The first three elections were for 100 councillors from 32 multi-member constituencies. This was revised to 92 councillors from single-member constituencies from the 1973 election. The electoral cycle was switched to four-yearly in 1976 and those elected in 1973 had their term extended by another year. Elections were held for a four-year term in 1977 and 1981. In 1984 the elections that were due to happen in 1985 were cancelled and those elected in 1981 had their term extended by another year. The results were as follows:
In 1983, GLC considered investing £230,000 into Lucas rail-bus, which could run on roads and rail tracks. The original concept was developed by Lucas Aerospace workers in the 1970s. In 1980–1981, the workers' combine built a prototype out of a second-hand Bristol bus. Notable successful housing developments that were built by the GLC include Balfron Tower which was completed in 1967 in Tower Hamlets and Trellick Tower which was completed in 1972 in North Kensington. Both of these buildings are now Grade II* listed.
In addition to the Thames Barrier, other notable successful GLC transport schemes which changed London included the opening of the Blackwall Tunnel second bore and the improvements to the Woolwich Ferry service. and meeting Sinn Féin MP Gerry Adams at a time when Adams was banned from entering Great Britain due to his links with the Provisional IRA.
By 1983, the government argued for the abolition of the GLC, claiming that it was inefficient and unnecessary and that its functions could be carried out more efficiently by the boroughs.
The Inner London Education Authority (ILEA) continued in existence for a few years, and direct elections to it were held but ILEA was finally also disbanded in 1990, with the Inner London boroughs assuming control over education as the outer boroughs had done on their creation in 1965.
Tony Blair's Labour government was elected in 1997, and was committed to bringing back London-wide government. In 1998 a referendum was held on the establishment of a new London authority and elected mayor, which was approved by a two to one margin.
The new Greater London Authority (GLA) was established in 2000 and was effectively a scaled down version of the GLC. In December 2025, the GLA was granted the right to use the GLC coat of arms by the King. The archives of the Greater London Council are held at London Metropolitan Archives.
Leaders of the GLC
{| class=wikitable
|-
! Number
! Image
! Leader
! Term
! colspan=2| Party
! Seat
|-
| 1
| 75px
| Sir Bill Fiske<br />(1905–1975)
| 1964–1967
|style="background-color: " |
| Labour
| Havering
|-
| 2
| 75px
| Sir Desmond Plummer<br />(1914–2009)
| 1967–1973
|style="background-color: " |
| Conservative
| Westminster and the City of London
|-
| 3
| 75px
| Sir Reg Goodwin<br />(1908–1986)
| 1973–1977
|style="background-color: " |
| Labour
| Bermondsey
|-
| 4
|
| Sir Horace Cutler<br />(1912–1997)
| 1977–1981
|style="background-color: " |
| Conservative
| Harrow West
|-
| 5
| 98x98px
| Ken Livingstone<br />(born 1945)
| 1981–1986
|style="background-color: " |
| Labour
| Paddington
|}
Ken Livingstone resigned on 2 August 1984, triggering the 1984 Paddington by-election. He was re-elected on 20 September 1984. During this time Ken Livingstone was not a member and John Wilson (Labour, Newham North East) acted as leader of the council.
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See also
- History of local government in London
- List of electoral divisions in Greater London
- List of Greater London Council committee chairs
- Members of the Greater London Council
- Greater London Council Staff Association
- Greater London Area War Risk Study
- OXO Tower – controversially sold by the GLC for £750,000 to Coin Street Community Builders in 1984
- GLC: The Carnage Continues... – satire of the GLC politics by The Comic Strip
- Gay Rights Working Party – part of the Greater London Council