The borough was created in 1965 under the London Government Act 1963, covering the combined area of the former Municipal Borough of Mitcham, the Municipal Borough of Wimbledon and the Merton and Morden Urban District. The area was transferred from Surrey to Greater London to become one of the 32 London Boroughs.^[2] The council's full legal name is "The Mayor and Burgesses of the London Borough of Merton", but it styles itself Merton Council.^[3]

From 1965 until 1986 the council was a lower-tier authority, with upper-tier functions provided by the Greater London Council. The split of powers and functions meant that the Greater London Council was responsible for "wide area" services such as fire, ambulance, flood prevention, and refuse disposal; with the boroughs (including Merton) responsible for "personal" services such as social care, libraries, cemeteries and refuse collection. As an outer London borough council Merton has been a local education authority since 1965. The Greater London Council was abolished in 1986 and its functions passed to the London Boroughs, with some services provided through joint committees.^[4]

Since 2000 the Greater London Authority has taken some responsibility for highways and planning control from the council, but within the English local government system the council remains a "most purpose" authority in terms of the available range of powers and functions.^[5]

The local authority derives its powers and functions from the London Government Act 1963 and subsequent legislation, and has the powers and functions of a London borough council. It sets council tax and as a billing authority also collects precepts for Greater London Authority functions and business rates.^[6] It sets planning policies which complement Greater London Authority and national policies, and decides on almost all planning applications accordingly. It is a local education authority and is also responsible for council housing, social services, libraries, waste collection and disposal, traffic, and most roads and environmental health.^[7]

Political control edit

The council has been under Labour majority control since 2014.

The first election was held in 1964, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until it came into its powers on 1 April 1965. Political control of the council since 1965 has been as follows:^[8][9][10]

Leadership edit

The role of Mayor of Merton is largely ceremonial. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1965 have been:^[11][12]

Composition edit

Following the 2022 election and a change of allegiance in January 2024,^[13] the composition of the council was:

The next election is due in May 2026.

The council is based at Merton Civic Centre on London Road in Morden. The building began as a 15-storey office block that was privately built as 'Crown House', opening in 1962.^[14] The council moved into the building in 1985, having previously been based at Wimbledon Town Hall.^[15] A three-storey extension in front of the older building was completed in 1990, including the council chamber.^[16][17]

Since the last boundary changes in 2022 the council has comprised 57 councillors representing 20 wards, with each ward electing two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years.^[18]

The political voting patterns in Merton broadly follow the geographical divide between Merton's two UK Parliament constituencies.

The eastern Mitcham and Morden constituency, which is held by Labour MP Siobhain McDonagh, contains ten wards and has only elected Labour councillors since 2014, with the exception of a single Conservative councillor elected in Lower Morden in 2022.

The western Wimbledon constituency, which is held by Conservative MP Stephen Hammond, contains ten wards with 27 councillors, 17 of which are currently Liberal Democrats. Since 1990, the ward of Merton Park has only ever returned councillors for Merton Park Ward Residents Association.^[19] The most recent elections in 2022 saw the Liberal Democrats replace the Conservatives as the main opposition on Merton Council, winning 17 seats across the Wimbledon wards. They won all council seats in four of the wards, while another four wards were split between the Liberal Democrats and either the Conservatives or Labour. The only ward completely held by the Conservatives is Village, while Labour maintains only a single councillor in each of the Abbey and Wandle wards.^[20]

At the annual council meeting, a mayor is elected to serve for a year. At the same time, the council elects a deputy mayor. Since 1978, each mayor must also be an elected councillor.

The mayor also acts as the ceremonial and civic head of the borough during his/her year of office, including chairing council meetings. The post is non-political, although they do get an additional casting vote in the event of a tie. Each year the mayor also chooses two charities which will benefit from a series of fundraising events throughout the mayoral year.

The following have served as mayor since the formation of the borough in 1965:^[21]