London County Council

The London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today known as Inner London and was replaced by the Greater London Council. The LCC was the largest, most significant and most ambitious English municipal authority of its day.

History

By the 19th century, the City of London Corporation covered only a small fraction of the metropolis. From 1855, the Metropolitan Board of Works (MBW) had certain powers across what is now Inner London, but it was appointed rather than elected. Many powers remained in the hands of traditional bodies such as parishes and the counties of Middlesex, Surrey, and Kent. The Local Government Act 1888 created a new County of London, with effect from 1889, and the English county councils, of which LCC was one. This followed a succession of scandals involving the MBW - which was abolished on LCC's creation - and was also prompted by a general desire to create a competent government for the metropolitan area, capable of delivering strategic services effectively. The Conservative government of the day would have preferred not to create a single body covering the whole of the new County of London, but its electoral pact with the Liberal Unionists led it to this policy. LCC was established as a provisional council on 31 January 1889 and came into its powers on 21 March 1889.