London Assembly
{{Short description|Elected body in London, England}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}
{{Infobox legislature
| background_color = #353C42
| name = London Assembly
| native_name =
| legislature =
| coa_pic = London Assembly logo.svg
| coa_res = 250px
| coa-pic =
| coa-res =
| foundation = 3 July 2000
| house_type = Unicameral deliberative assembly of London
| leader1_type = Chair
| leader1 = Len Duvall
| party1 =
Labour
| election1 = 6 May 2025{{cite web |title=
Assembly starts 25th Anniversary year with longest serving Member as Chair
|url=https://www.london.gov.uk/who-we-are/what-london-assembly-does/london-assembly-press-releases/assembly-starts-25th-anniversary-year-longest-serving-member-chair |website=London Assembly |access-date=22 May 2025 |date=6 May 2024}}
| leader2_type = Deputy Chair
| leader2 = Andrew Boff
| party2 =
Conservative
| leader3_type = Group leaders
| leader3 = {{plainlist|
- Len Duvall, Labour
- Susan Hall, Conservative
- Caroline Russell, Green
- Hina Bokhari, Liberal Democrat
- Alex Wilson, Reform UK
}}
| members = 25
| structure1 = Londonassembly2024.svg
| structure1_res = 250px
| political_groups1 = {{unbulleted list
| {{nowrap|{{Color box|{{party color|Labour Party (UK)}}|border=darkgray}} Labour (11){{efn|Includes 6 Labour Co-op AMs.}}}}
| {{nowrap|{{Color box|{{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}|border=darkgray}} Conservative (8)}}
| {{nowrap|{{Color box|{{party color|Green Party of England and Wales}}|border=darkgray}} Green (3)}}
| {{nowrap|{{Color box|{{party color|Liberal Democrats (UK)}}|border=darkgray}} Liberal Democrats (2)}}
| {{nowrap|{{Color box|{{party color|Reform UK}}|border=darkgray}} Reform UK (1)}}
}}
| committees1 = {{Collapsible list|title=List|Audit|Budget and Performance|Budget Monitoring|Confirmation Hearings|Economy|Education|Environment|GLA Oversight|Health|Housing|Planning|Police and Crime|Regeneration|Transport}}
| house1 =
| voting_system1 = Additional-member system
| voting_system2 =
| last_election1 = 2 May 2024
| next_election1 = 4 May 2028
| session_room = Siemens Crystal Building, London.jpg
| session_res = 150px
| meeting_place = City Hall, Newham, London
| website = {{URL|https://www.london.gov.uk/|london.gov.uk}}
| footnotes =
}}
{{Politics of London}}
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 the Mayor's draft statutory strategies.{{cite web|url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2011/20/section/229 |title=Localism Act 2011 |publisher=Legislation.gov.uk |date=2012-02-07 |access-date=2015-04-03}} The London Assembly was established in 2000. It is also able to investigate other issues of importance to Londoners (most notably transport or environmental matters), publish its findings and recommendations, and make proposals to the Mayor.
Assembly members
The Assembly comprises 25 members elected using the additional-member system of mixed-member proportional representation, with 13 seats needed for a majority. Elections take place every four years, at the same time as those for the mayor of London. There are 14 geographical constituencies, each electing one member, with a further 11 members elected from a party list to make the total number of Assembly members from each party proportional to the votes cast for that party across the whole of London using a modified D'Hondt allocation.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-17769428 |title=How the London election works |publisher=BBC |date=25 April 2012 |access-date=18 November 2012}} A party must win at least 5% of the party list vote in order to win any seats. Members of the London Assembly have the post-nominal title "AM". The annual salary for a London Assembly member is approximately £60,416.{{Cite web|date=2015-03-19|title=Salaries, expenses, benefits and workforce information|url=https://www.london.gov.uk//about-us/governance-and-spending/spending-money-wisely/salaries-expenses-benefits-and-workforce-information|access-date=2023-07-05|website=London City Hall|language=en-GB}}
=Former Assembly members=
Since its creation in 2000, sixteen Assembly members subsequently were elected to the House of Commons: David Lammy, Meg Hillier, Diana Johnson, and Florence Eshalomi for Labour; Andrew Pelling, Bob Neill, Angie Bray, Bob Blackman, Eric Ollerenshaw, Victoria Borwick, James Cleverly, Kit Malthouse, Kemi Badenoch, and Gareth Bacon for the Conservatives; Lynne Featherstone for the Liberal Democrats and Siân Berry for the Green Party.
One Assembly member, Jenny Jones, was elevated to the House of Lords as the Green Party's first life peer in 2013, continuing to sit in the Assembly until May 2016. Sally Hamwee, Graham Tope, and Toby Harris were already peers when elected to the assembly, while Lynne Featherstone and Dee Doocey were created life peers after standing down from the Assembly.
Val Shawcross, AM for Lambeth and Southwark, unsuccessfully contested Bermondsey and Old Southwark as the Labour parliamentary candidate at the 2010 general election, and Navin Shah stood unsuccessfully as the Labour candidate for Harrow East in 2017. Andrew Dismore, Graham Tope, and the late Richard Tracey are all former MPs later elected to the assembly. John Biggs, formerly AM for City and East, served as the directly elected mayor of Tower Hamlets from 2015 until 2022.
=Structure of the Assembly=
London Assembly elections have been held under the additional member system, with a set number of constituencies elected on a first-past-the-post system and a set number London-wide on a closed party list system. Terms are for four years, so despite the delayed 2020 election, which was held in 2021, the following election was held in 2024.
In December 2016, an Electoral Reform Bill was introduced which would have changed the election system to first-past-the-post.{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/electoral-reform-proportional-representation-pr-system-london-assembly-electoral-reform-bill-a7492531.html|title=Tory and Labour MPs gang up in bid to strip London Assembly of PR voting system|last=Stone|first=Jon|date=23 December 2016|work=The Independent}} At the 2017 general election, the Conservative Party manifesto proposed changing how the Assembly is elected to first-past-the-post.{{cite web|url=https://www.mayorwatch.co.uk/tories-confirm-london-assembly-also-faces-election-rules-shake-up/|title=Tories confirm London Assembly also faces election rules shake-up|date=19 May 2017|publisher=Mayor Watch}}
However, since the general election of 2017, which resulted in a hung Parliament with the Conservatives and the Democratic Unionist Party in a confidence and supply arrangement, no action has been taken with regard to the electoral arrangements of the London Assembly, and the 2020 election, delayed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, was held on the current electoral system of AMS (constituencies and regional lists).
| class="wikitable" |
| colspan=2 rowspan=2 | Political party
! colspan="8" | Assembly members |
|---|
| {{vert header|nb=1|2000}}
! {{vert header|nb=1|2004}} ! {{vert header|nb=1|2008}} ! {{vert header|nb=1|2012}} ! {{vert header|nb=1|2016}} ! {{vert header|nb=1|2021}} ! colspan="2" | 2024 |
| {{party color cell|Labour Party (UK)}}
| Labour | style="text-align: right" | 9 | style="text-align: right" | 7 | style="text-align: right" | 8 | style="text-align: right" | 12 | style="text-align: right" | 12 | style="text-align: right" | 11 | style="text-align: right" | 11 | {{Infobox political party/seats|11|25|hex={{party color|Labour Party (UK)}}}} |
| {{party color cell|Conservative Party (UK)}}
| style="text-align: right" | 9 | style="text-align: right" | 9 | style="text-align: right" | 11 | style="text-align: right" | 9 | style="text-align: right" | 8 | style="text-align: right" | 9 | style="text-align: right" | 8 | {{Infobox political party/seats|8|25|hex={{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}}} |
| {{party color cell|Green Party of England and Wales}}
| Green | style="text-align: right" | 3 | style="text-align: right" | 2 | style="text-align: right" | 2 | style="text-align: right" | 2 | style="text-align: right" | 2 | style="text-align: right" | 3 | style="text-align: right" | 3 | {{Infobox political party/seats|3|25|hex={{party color|Green Party of England and Wales}}}} |
| {{party color cell|Liberal Democrats (UK)}}
| style="text-align: right" | 4 | style="text-align: right" | 5 | style="text-align: right" | 3 | style="text-align: right" | 2 | style="text-align: right" | 1 | style="text-align: right" | 2 | style="text-align: right" | 2 | {{Infobox political party/seats|2|25|hex={{party color|Liberal Democrats (UK)}}}} |
| {{party color cell|Reform UK}}
| style="text-align: right" {{N/A |
| style="text-align: right" {{N/A|}}
| style="text-align: right" {{N/A|}}
| style="text-align: right" {{N/A|}}
| style="text-align: right" {{N/A|}}
| style="text-align: right" | 0
| style="text-align: right" | 1
| {{Infobox political party/seats|1|25|hex={{party color|Reform UK}}}}
|-
| {{party color cell|UK Independence Party}}
| UKIP
| style="text-align: right" | 0
| style="text-align: right" | 2
| style="text-align: right" | 0
| style="text-align: right" | 0
| style="text-align: right" | 2
| style="text-align: right" | 0
| style="text-align: right" {{N/A|}}
| style="text-align: center" {{N/A|}}
|-
| {{party color cell|British National Party}}
| BNP
| style="text-align: right" | 0
| style="text-align: right" | 0
| style="text-align: right" | 1
| style="text-align: right" | 0
| style="text-align: right" | 0
| style="text-align: right" {{N/A|}}
| style="text-align: right" {{N/A|}}
| style="text-align: center" {{N/A|}}
|}
On 12 December 2018, following Peter Whittle's departure from UKIP, he and David Kurten disbanded the UKIP grouping and formed the Brexit Alliance group.
In March 2019, following the departure of Tom Copley and Fiona Twycross to take up full-time Deputy Mayor roles, Murad Qureshi and Alison Moore replaced them as Labour Assembly members. The end of the term in office for AMs was extended from May 2020 to May 2021, as no elections were being held during the COVID-19 pandemic.
=List of current Assembly members=
{{further|London Assembly constituencies}}
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Constituency
! Member ! colspan="2" | Political party |
|---|
| Barnet and Camden
| {{sortname|Anne|Clarke|Anne Clarke (politician)}} | {{Party name with colour|Labour Co-operative}} |
| Bexley and Bromley
| {{sortname|Thomas|Turrell|Thomas Turrell}} | {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| Brent and Harrow
| {{sortname|Krupesh|Hirani|Krupesh Hirani}} | {{Party name with colour|Labour Co-operative}} |
| City and East
| {{sortname|Unmesh|Desai|Unmesh Desai}} | {{Party name with colour|Labour Co-operative}} |
| Croydon and Sutton
| {{sortname|Neil|Garratt|Neil Garratt}} | {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| Ealing and Hillingdon
| {{sortname|Bassam|Mahfouz|Bassam Mahfouz}} | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} |
| Enfield and Haringey
| {{sortname|Joanne|McCartney|Joanne McCartney}} | {{Party name with colour|Labour Co-operative}} |
| Greenwich and Lewisham
| {{sortname|Len|Duvall|Len Duvall}} | {{Party name with colour|Labour Co-operative}} |
| Havering and Redbridge
| {{sortname|Keith|Prince|Keith Prince}} | {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| Lambeth and Southwark
| {{sortname|Marina|Ahmad|Marina Ahmad}} | {{Party name with colour|Labour Co-operative}} |
| Merton and Wandsworth
| {{sortname|Leonie|Cooper|Leonie Cooper}} | {{Party name with colour|Labour Co-operative}} |
| North East
| {{sortname|Sem|Moema|Sem Moema}} | {{Party name with colour|Labour Co-operative}} |
| South West
| {{sortname|Gareth|Roberts|Gareth Roberts (politician)}} | {{Party name with colour|Liberal Democrats (UK)}} |
| West Central
| {{sortname|James|Small-Edwards|James Small-Edwards}} | {{Party name with colour|Labour Co-operative}} |
| rowspan="11" {{n/a|Additional members London-wide }} | {{sortname|Zoë|Garbett|Zoë Garbett}} | {{Party name with colour|Green Party of England and Wales}} |
| {{sortname|Susan|Hall|Susan Hall}}
| {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| {{sortname|Alex|Wilson|Alex Wilson (British politician)}}
| {{Party name with colour|Reform UK}} |
| {{sortname|Caroline|Russell|Caroline Russell}}
| {{Party name with colour|Green Party of England and Wales}} |
| The Lord Bailey of Paddington
| {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| {{sortname|Emma|Best|Emma Best (politician)}}
| {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| {{sortname|Hina|Bokhari|Hina Bokhari}}
| {{Party name with colour|Liberal Democrats (UK)}} |
| {{sortname|Zack|Polanski|Zack Polanski}}
| {{Party name with colour|Green Party of England and Wales}} |
| {{sortname|Andrew|Boff|Andrew Boff}}
| {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| {{sortname|Elly|Baker|Elly Baker}}
| {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} |
| {{sortname|Alessandro|Georgiou}}
| {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
[[File:London Assembly composition.png|thumb|1000px|center|Composition of London Assembly, 2000 – 2021{{paragraph}}
{{Color box|#99cc33|border=darkgray}} Green Party {{Color box|#ff0000|border=darkgray}} Labour Party {{Color box|#fdbb30|border=darkgray}} Liberal Democrats {{Color box|#0087dc|border=darkgray}} Conservative Party {{Color box|#70147a|border=darkgray}} UKIP {{Color box|#00008b|border=darkgray}} BNP ]]
List of chairs of the London Assembly
| class="wikitable"
|+ Chairs of the assembly |
| Name
! Entered office ! Left office ! colspan=2 | Political party |
|---|
| Trevor Phillips
| May 2000 | May 2001 | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} |
| Sally Hamwee
| May 2001 | May 2002 | {{Party name with colour|Liberal Democrats (UK)}} |
| Trevor Phillips
| May 2002 | February 2003 | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} |
| Sally Hamwee
| February 2003 | May 2004 | {{Party name with colour|Liberal Democrats (UK)}} |
| Brian Coleman
| May 2004 | May 2005 | {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| Sally Hamwee
| May 2005 | May 2006 | {{Party name with colour|Liberal Democrats (UK)}} |
| Brian Coleman
| May 2006 | May 2007 | {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| Sally Hamwee
| May 2007 | May 2008 | {{Party name with colour|Liberal Democrats (UK)}} |
| Jennette Arnold
| May 2008 | May 2009 | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} |
| Darren Johnson
| May 2009 | May 2010 | {{Party name with colour|Green Party of England and Wales}} |
| Dee Doocey
| May 2010 | May 2011 | {{Party name with colour|Liberal Democrats (UK)}} |
| Jennette Arnold
| May 2011 | May 2013 | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} |
| Darren Johnson
| May 2013 | May 2014 | {{Party name with colour|Green Party of England and Wales}} |
| Roger Evans
| May 2014 | May 2015 | {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| Jennette Arnold
| May 2015 | May 2016 | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} |
| Tony Arbour
| May 2016 | May 2017 | {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| Jennette Arnold
| May 2017 | May 2018 | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} |
| Tony Arbour
| May 2018 | May 2019 | {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| Jennette Arnold
| May 2019 | May 2020 | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} |
| Navin Shah
| May 2020 | May 2021 | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} |
| Andrew Boff
| May 2021 | May 2022 | {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| Onkar Sahota
| May 2022 | May 2023 | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} |
| Andrew Boff
| May 2023 | May 2025 | {{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}} |
| Len Duvall
| May 2025 | Incumbent | {{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}} |
Committees
The Assembly has formed the following committees:
- Audit Panel, chaired by Neil Garratt
- Budget and Performance Committee, chaired by Neil Garratt
- Confirmation Hearings Committee
- Economy, Culture, and Skills Committee, chaired by Hina Bokhari
- Environment Committee, chaired by Leonie Cooper
- Fire Committee, chaired by Zack Polanski
- GLA Oversight Committee, chaired by Bassam Mahfouz
- Health Committee, chaired by Emma Best
- Housing Committee, chaired by Zoë Garbett
- Planning and Regeneration Committee, chaired by James Small-Edwards
- Police and Crime Committee, chaired by Marina Ahmad
- Transport Committee, chaired by Elly Baker
The Police and Crime Committee was set up under the terms of the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 in order to scrutinise the work of Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime, which replaced the Metropolitan Police Authority.{{cite web|url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2011/13/section/32/enacted |title=Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 |publisher=Legislation.gov.uk |date=2011-10-26 |access-date=2015-01-29}}
Result maps
These maps only show constituency results and not list results.
File:Greater London UK assembly election 2000 map.svg|2000 results
File:Greater London UK assembly election 2004 map.svg|2004 results
File:Greater London UK assembly election 2000 map.svg|2008 results
File:Greater London UK assembly election 2012 map.svg|2012 results
File:Greater London UK assembly election 2016 map.svg|2016 results
File:Greater London UK assembly map 2021.svg|2021 results
File:Greater London UK assembly map 2024.svg|2024 results
London Youth Assembly
The London Assembly also operates a London Youth Assembly (LYA), which is made up of young people from across London. Each London borough elects or selects a representative and deputy representative to serve on the assembly.{{Cite web |date=14 November 2018 |title=The London Youth Assembly |url=https://www.london.gov.uk/who-we-are/what-london-assembly-does/london-assembly-publications/london-youth-assembly |access-date=26 January 2025 |website=London Assembly}}{{Cite web |title=How the London Assembly Works for You: An Easy Read Guide |url=https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2024-08/London-Assembly-Easy-Read-Guide-2024.pdf |access-date=26 January 2025 |page=17}} The procedure for choosing a representative is different in each borough, with some boroughs electing representatives while other representatives are selected by their local youth forum or council.{{Cite web |title=The London Youth Assembly |url=https://gla.moderngov.co.uk/documents/s73752/02b%20-%20London%20Youth%20Assembly%20Standards%20V1%202018.pdf |access-date=26 January 2025 |publisher=Greater London Authority}} Representatives are aged 11 to 19, or 11 to 25 if they have a disability or special needs. A representative may be known as a London Youth Assembly Member (LYAM) and a deputy representative may be known as a Deputy London Youth Assembly Member (DLYAM).
Ashan Khehra is the current Chair of the London Youth Assembly (LYA), elected unanimously in April 2024. He previously served as the LYA Member for Hounslow. Since taking on the role, Khehra has overseen efforts to re-establish the Assembly following a period of inactivity. During his tenure, the LYA has introduced several new initiatives, including the London Youth Achievement Awards, developed in partnership with the London Assembly to mark its 25th anniversary. He has also implemented a shadow cabinet within the Assembly, intended to provide a structured way for young people to engage with and contribute to discussions on city-level policy.
Notes
{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}
References
{{reflist|30em}}
External links
- [http://www.london.gov.uk/about-us/london-assembly London Assembly]
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20090210045243/http://www.london.gov.uk/assembly/reports/index.jsp London Assembly publications]
- {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20130222031855/http://cityhalllabour.org/ City Hall Labour]}}
- [http://glaconservatives.co.uk/ Conservatives in the London Assembly]
- [http://www.glalibdems.org.uk/ London Assembly Liberal Democrats]
{{London Assembly}}
{{London}}
Category:Local government in London