Reform of fire service decision making in London

The Mayor of London has written to the Secretary of State requesting that he makes an order under Schedule 28 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999.

The requested amendments to the composition of the membership of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority are:

• the number of Assembly members be reduced from 8 to 6
• the number of London borough councillors be reduced from 7 to 5
• the number of Mayoral appointees be increased from 2 to 6

The Mayor has provided the Secretary of State with a summary of the results (PDF,1.23 MB) of his own consultation exercise together with a business case for reform.

The Mayor is seeking the change in the composition of the membership on the grounds of:

• improved democratic accountability
• greater clarity in executive-scrutiny responsibilities
• better links to budgetary responsibility
• greater policy convergence across the Greater London Authority Group
• achieving efficiencies
• access to a wider pool of appointees

The Secretary of State is content to hold a consultation in accordance with Schedule 28 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999.

In accordance with the requirements of Schedule 28, before making an order varying any of the membership numbers, the Secretary of State is required to consult:

• the Mayor
• the Assembly
• the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority
• every London borough council

The Secretary of State considers that in this instance, the consultation should not be limited to those listed in the Act and would welcome the views of any other interested party.