Greater London Authority (Referendum) Act 1998
The Greater London Authority (Referendum) Act 1998 (c. 3) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which made legal provision for the holding of a non-binding referendum in Greater London on whether there should be a democratically elected Assembly for London and a separately elected Mayor for London.
| Act of Parliament | |
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| Long title | An Act to make provision for the holding of a referendum on the establishment of a Greater London Authority and for expenditure in preparation for such an Authority; and to confer additional functions on the Local Government Commission for England in connection with the establishment of such an Authority. |
|---|---|
| Citation | 1998 c. 3 |
| Introduced by | John Prescott, Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
| Territorial extent | England |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 23 February 1998 |
Status: Spent | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
The Act
The Act legislated for the holding of a non-binding referendum to be held on 7 May 1998 in Greater London on whether there should be a democratically elected London Assembly and a separately elected Mayor for London and legislates for the appointment a Chief Counting Officer to oversee the referendum.
The referendum
The act legislated for a non binding referendum to be held in Greater London on 7 May 1998 on the issue of a Greater London Authority and enables the Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom to appoint a Chief Counting Officer to oversee the referendum.
Referendum question
The question that appeared on ballot papers in the referendum before the electorate under the act was:
Are you in favour of the Government's proposals for a Greater London Authority, made up of an elected mayor and a separately elected assembly?
permitting a simple YES / NO answer.
Counting areas
The 33 London Boroughs would be used as the counting areas for the referendum.
Result
| Greater London Authority referendum, 1998 Result | |||
| Choice | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | 1,230,739 | 72.01% | |
| No | 478,413 | 27.99% | |
| Valid votes | 1,709,172 | 98.49% | |
| Invalid or blank votes | 26,178 | 1.51% | |
| Total votes | 1,735,350 | 100.00% | |
| Registered voters and turnout | 5,016,064 | 34.60% | |
Outcome
Following the successful outcome of the vote the Greater London Authority Act 1999 was passed by the UK Parliament and the Authority came into being following elections in 2000.