The GLA: who, what, when, how?

Following much fanfare the Greater London Assembly is now presiding over the city. JON FENTON-FISCHER outlines the GLA's responsibilites

On Friday afternoon, a group of people gathered for the first meeting of the Greater London Assembly in Marsham Street, near the houses of Parliament.

The building they met in is temporary, and one of the first battles likely to face the new administration is whether or not to move into the new £65æmillion headquarters designed by Norman Foster.

The Foster building, dubbed the 'glass headlamp' by some and something much ruder by others, is already in construction near London Bridge.

It is due to be completed over the next four years.

Ken Livingstone has already expressed doubts about the necessity of such an extravagant building.

But whether the new authority for London will replicate the excesses of the old Greater London Council, time will only tell.

But one thing is certain: Mayor Livingstone and the GLA have a remit allowing them greater responsibilty for the capital than any other group has had for over a decade.

But how will the 400 staff administer their new bureacracy, and what are the main areas where Ken will be able to impose his authority when the GLA assumes its responsibilties on July 3?

Here are the facts:

STRUCTURE:

The GLA will have a pool of permanent staff to support the mayor and the 25-member assembly.

In addition, the mayor will be able to make a number of personal appointments which will assist him in developing policies.

RESOURCES:

The GLA will take control of a number of existing government programmes in London on police, fire, transport and economic development and regeneration, amounting to some £3.6æbillion.

THE MAYOR:

Among the mayor's main powers will be to set a budget for the GLA and four new bodies which are being created: Transport for London, the London Development Agency, the Metropolitan Police Authority and the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority.

He will also make appointments to these new police and fire authorities and publish a regular report on the state of the environment in London.

The mayor will be directly elected every four years, and the mayor's actions will be subject to scrutiny from the Assembly. Ken Livingstone's initial salary is £84,385.

THE LONDON ASSEMBLY:

The assembly is a scrutinising body with 25 members.

It will act as a means of checking and balancing the mayor, and has the power to amend his budget by a two thirds majority.

It will be elected every four years, at the same time as the mayor.

Meetings of the assembly will be in public, and twice a year the mayor and assembly will hold a 'People's Question Time'.

THE TUBE:

One of the main topics of the mayoral campaign. Livingstone is famous for his 'fares fair' GLC policy, which reduced public transport costs. He has promised to fight the Government's plans to partly privatise the Tube, and said he will limit fare rises to inflation. He has also promised to freeze bus fares for four years.

ROAD PRICING:

Apart from government funding, the mayor has a few ways of earning revenue. One of them is road pricing, allowing him to charge motorists to drive into central London. Livingstone has said a basic system will be running by the end of the year, with a more sophisticated system to follow. Current suggestions include a £5 charge to drive your car in the city centre.

CAR PARKING:

As above, Livingstone can impose new parking charges across London. These cannot be vetoed by the Government, though the mayor could be stopped from spending the proceeds. The new body, Transport for London, can also introduce charges for parking in the workplace.

COUNCIL TAX:

There is a chance local boroughs will raise council taxes, as the mayor can demand cash for his projects from them. If the demands are excessive, boroughs will have to increase council tax to compensate, though the Government, specifically the Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions, can block council tax increases.

POLICE:

The Mayor and the new Metropolitan Police Authority don't have day-to-day operational control over the Metropolitan Police, but they are responsible for setting the force's budget and monitoring performance targets.

Richard Barnes, 51, is the GLA member for Ealing and Hillingdon.

A councillor since 1982, he lives in Ickenham and is the leader of Hillingdon Council, a position he expects to step down from in a few months.

Your representatives

Toby Harris, 46, is the newly-elected GLA member for Brent and Harrow.

A Blair supporter and ex-leader of Haringey Council, he was made a 'working peer' in the House of Lords in 1998.

Toby Harris, 46, is the newly-elected GLA member for Brent and Harrow.

A Blair supporter and ex-leader of Haringey Council, he was made a 'working peer' in the House of Lords in 1998.

Richard Barnes, 51, is the GLA member for Ealing and Hillingdon.

A councillor since 1982, he lives in Ickenham and is the leader of Hillingdon Council, a position he expects to step down from in a few months.

THE TUBE:

One of the main topics of the mayoral campaign. Livingstone has become famous for his 'fares fair' policy at the GLC, which reduced public transport across the capital, though some have challenged Livingstone's claim that he actually dreamt the scheme up. He has already promised to fight the Government's plans to partly privatise the Tube, and said he will limit Tube fare rises to the rate of inflation. In addition, he has promised to freeze bus fares for four years.

ROAD PRICING:

Apart from the money given to the GLA by the Government, the mayor will have few areas where he can raise money himself. One of them is road pricing, where he will be able to charge motorists for driving into central London. Livingstone has promised a basic system will be up and running by the end of the year, with a more sophisticated system to follow later. Current suggestions include a plan to impose a £5 charge to bring your car to the centre of the city.

CAR PARKING:

As above, Livingstone can impose new parking charges across London. These cannot be vetoed by the Government, though the mayor could be stopped from spending the proceeds. The new body, Transport for London, can also introduce charges for parking in the workplace.

COUNCIL TAX:

There is a chance local boroughs will raise council taxes, as the mayor can demand cash for his projects from them. If the demands are excessive, boroughs will have to increase council tax to compensate, though the Government, specifically the Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions, can block any council tax increases.

POLICE:

The mayor and the new Metropolitan Police Authority will not have day-to-day operational control over the Metropolitan Police, but they will be responsible for setting the force's budget and setting and monitoring performance targets.

Richard Barnes, 51, is the member for Ealing and Hillingdon. A councillor since 1982, he lives in Ickenham and is the leader of Hillingdon Council, a post he expects to resign in a few months.

Toby Harris, 46, is the newly-elected GLA member for Brent and Harrow. A Blair supporter and ex-leader of Haringey Council, he was made a 'working peer' in the House of Lords in 1998.

Following much fanfare the Greater London Assembly is about to preside over the city. JON FENTON-FISCHER outlines the role and responsibilites of the new GLA

On Friday, a group of people gathered for the first meeting of the Greater London Assembly in Marsham Street.

The building they met in is temporary, and one of the first battles likely to face the new administration is whether to move to the new £65æmillion headquarters designed by Norman Foster. The Foster building, dubbed the 'glass headlamp', is already in construction near London Bridge. It is due to be completed over the next four years. Ken Livingstone has already expressed doubts about the necessity of such extravagance. Whether the new authority for London will replicate the excesses of the old Greater London Council, time will only tell.

But one thing is certain: Mayor Livingstone and the GLA have a remit allowing them greater responsibilty for the capital than any other group has had for over a decade. But how will the 400 staff administer their new bureacracy, and what are the main areas where Ken will be able to impose his authority when the GLA assumes its responsibilties on July 3? Here are the facts:

STRUCTURE:

The GLA will have a pool of permanent staff to support the Mayor and the 25-member Assembly. In addition, the Mayor will be able to make a number of appointments to assist him in developing policies.

RESOURCES:

The GLA will take control of a number of existing government programmes in London on police, fire, transport and economic development and regeneration, amounting to some £3.6æbillion.

THE MAYOR:

Among the mayor's main powers will be to set a budget for the GLA and four new bodies which are being created: Transport for London, the London Development Agency, the Metropolitan Police Authority and the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority.

He will also make appointments to these new police and fire authorities, and publish a regular report on the state of the environment in London.

The mayor will be directly elected every four years, and the mayor's actions will be subject to scrutiny from the Assembly.

Ken Livingstone's initial salary is £84,385.

THE LONDON ASSEMBLY:

A scrutinising body with 25 members. It will provide a check and balance on the Mayor, and have the power to amend his budget by a two thirds majority.

It will be elected every four years, at the same time as the Mayor.

Meetings of the Assembly will be in public, and twice a year the Mayor and Assembly will hold a 'People's Question Time'.