A (very) brief history of London government

The 32 London boroughs were created just over 40 years ago, at the same time as the old GLC. They replaced the old London County Council and the metropolitan boroughs that had governed London since Victorian times. The City of London, of course, is much older - it has governed the 'square mile' for about 700 years.

The boroughs and the GLC provided the two-tier system of London government for 21 years, until the GLC was abolished in 1986. Services previously provided by the GLC were then shared out between the boroughs, central government, and a new set of London-wide bodies. This arrangement continued until the formation of the Greater London Authority in 2000, which restored two-tier local/regional government to the capital.

The new bodies set up in 1986 on the demise of the GLC were either incorporated into the new GLA, or merged to help form the then Association of London Government, now London Councils.