Greater London Council election, 1967
Encyclopedia
The second election to the Greater London Council
was held on 13 April 1967, and saw the first Conservative victory for a London-wide authority since 1931. In addition to the 100 councillors, there were sixteen Aldermen who divided 10 Conservative and 6 Labour, so that the Conservatives actually had 92 seats to 24 for Labour following the election.
With an electorate of 5,319,023, there was a turnout of 41.1%. While a Conservative victory was thought likely, the scale of the victory surprised many people; the Conservative wins in Camden
, Greenwich
, Hammersmith
and Haringey
were particularly impressive.
Among those defeated in the election were the Labour Leader, Bill Fiske
in Havering
by a Conservative team that included Jeffrey Archer, who was making his entrance into politics. Other notable politicians who had their first success at this election include Harvey Hinds (Labour, Southwark
, later Chief Whip for Ken Livingstone
) and Christopher Bland
(Conservative, Lewisham
, later Chairman of the BBC
).
), was a school nurse for the Inner London Education Authority
. It was discovered that this was a disqualifying office as she was in effect an employee of the GLC (given that ILEA was technically a committee of the GLC); she resigned on 24 May prior to the hearing of an election petition. At a byelection on 29 June, Labour gained the seat. There were two further byelections during the course of the term: on 7 November 1968 the Conservatives held a seat at Bromley
after the death of a councillor, and on 12 December of the same year the Conservatives held a seat at Havering
after one of their councillors resigned.
There were two seats vacant by the end of the term. A Conservative councillor for Harrow
died on 8 June 1969 and on 8 January 1970 a Conservative councillor for Hammersmith
was disqualified after failing to attend a meeting of the GLC or its committees for six months.
Greater London Council
The Greater London Council was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council which had covered a much smaller area...
was held on 13 April 1967, and saw the first Conservative victory for a London-wide authority since 1931. In addition to the 100 councillors, there were sixteen Aldermen who divided 10 Conservative and 6 Labour, so that the Conservatives actually had 92 seats to 24 for Labour following the election.
With an electorate of 5,319,023, there was a turnout of 41.1%. While a Conservative victory was thought likely, the scale of the victory surprised many people; the Conservative wins in Camden
London Borough of Camden
In 1801, the civil parishes that form the modern borough were already developed and had a total population of 96,795. This continued to rise swiftly throughout the 19th century, as the district became built up; reaching 270,197 in the middle of the century...
, Greenwich
London Borough of Greenwich
The London Borough of Greenwich is an Inner London borough in south-east London, England. Taking its name from the historic town of Greenwich, the present borough was formed in 1965 by the amalgamation of the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Greenwich with part of the Metropolitan...
, Hammersmith
London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham is a London borough in West London, and forms part of Inner London. Traversed by the east-west main roads of the A4 Great West Road and the A40 Westway, many international corporations have offices in the borough....
and Haringey
London Borough of Haringey
The London Borough of Haringey is a London borough, in North London, classified by some definitions as part of Inner London, and by others as part of Outer London. It was created in 1965 by the amalgamation of three former boroughs. It shares borders with six other London boroughs...
were particularly impressive.
Among those defeated in the election were the Labour Leader, Bill Fiske
Bill Fiske
William Geoffrey Fiske, Baron Fiske OBE , commonly known as Bill Fiske, was the first Leader of the Greater London Council and oversaw the decimalisation of the Pound Sterling as Chairman of the Decimal Currency Board....
in Havering
London Borough of Havering
The London Borough of Havering is a London borough in North East London, England and forms part of Outer London. The principal town in Havering is Romford and the other main communities are Hornchurch, Upminster and Rainham. The borough is mainly characterised by suburban development with large...
by a Conservative team that included Jeffrey Archer, who was making his entrance into politics. Other notable politicians who had their first success at this election include Harvey Hinds (Labour, Southwark
London Borough of Southwark
The London Borough of Southwark is a London borough in south east London, England. It is directly south of the River Thames and the City of London, and forms part of Inner London.-History:...
, later Chief Whip for Ken Livingstone
Ken Livingstone
Kenneth Robert "Ken" Livingstone is an English politician who is currently a member of the centrist to centre-left Labour Party...
) and Christopher Bland
Christopher Bland
Sir Christopher Buchan Bland is a British businessman and politician. He was Chairman of the Board of Governors of the BBC from 1996 to 2001, when he took up a position as Chairman of British Telecommunications plc...
(Conservative, Lewisham
London Borough of Lewisham
The London Borough of Lewisham is a London borough in south-east London, England and forms part of Inner London. The principal settlement of the borough is Lewisham...
, later Chairman of the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
).
Results
| Greater London Council election, 1967 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Votes | Votes % | +/- | Candidates | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net Gain/Loss | |
| 1,136,092 | 52.6 | +12.5 | 100 | 82 | 46 | +46 | |||
| 732,669 | 34.0 | -10.7 | 100 | 18 | 46 | -46 | |||
| 189,868 | 8.8 | -1.2 | 100 | ||||||
| 65,184 | 3.0 | -0.8 | 38 | ||||||
| 13,229 | 0.6 | 10 | |||||||
| 8,146 | 0.4 | +0.3 | 5 | ||||||
| 3,695 | 0.2 | 14 | |||||||
| National Union of Council Tenants | 1,977 | 0.1 | 4 | ||||||
| 1,840 | 0.1 | 3 | |||||||
| John Hampden New Freedom Party | 1,580 | 0.1 | 1 | ||||||
| Islington London Borough of Islington The London Borough of Islington is a London borough in Inner London. It was formed in 1965 by merging the former metropolitan boroughs of Islington and Finsbury. The borough contains two Westminster parliamentary constituencies, Islington North and Islington South & Finsbury... Tenants and Ratepayers Political Association |
1,244 | 0.1 | 3 | ||||||
| Independent Carnaby Street Carnaby Street Carnaby Street is a pedestrianised shopping street in London, United Kingdom, located in the Soho district, near Oxford Street and Regent Street. It is home to numerous fashion and lifestyle retailers, including a large number of independent fashion boutiques... candidates |
870 | 0.0 | 2 | ||||||
| Commonwealth Party of Great Britain | 714 | 0.0 | 4 | ||||||
| European Labour Party | 664 | 0.0 | 1 | ||||||
By-elections 1967-1970
One of the successful Conservative candidates, Sheila Bradley (GreenwichLondon Borough of Greenwich
The London Borough of Greenwich is an Inner London borough in south-east London, England. Taking its name from the historic town of Greenwich, the present borough was formed in 1965 by the amalgamation of the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Greenwich with part of the Metropolitan...
), was a school nurse for the Inner London Education Authority
Inner London Education Authority
The Inner London Education Authority was the education authority for the 12 inner London boroughs from 1965 until its abolition in 1990.-History:...
. It was discovered that this was a disqualifying office as she was in effect an employee of the GLC (given that ILEA was technically a committee of the GLC); she resigned on 24 May prior to the hearing of an election petition. At a byelection on 29 June, Labour gained the seat. There were two further byelections during the course of the term: on 7 November 1968 the Conservatives held a seat at Bromley
London Borough of Bromley
The London Borough of Bromley is a London borough of south east London, England and forms part of Outer London. The principal town in the borough is Bromley.-Geography:...
after the death of a councillor, and on 12 December of the same year the Conservatives held a seat at Havering
London Borough of Havering
The London Borough of Havering is a London borough in North East London, England and forms part of Outer London. The principal town in Havering is Romford and the other main communities are Hornchurch, Upminster and Rainham. The borough is mainly characterised by suburban development with large...
after one of their councillors resigned.
There were two seats vacant by the end of the term. A Conservative councillor for Harrow
London Borough of Harrow
The London Borough of Harrow is a London borough of north-west London. It borders Hertfordshire to the north and other London boroughs: Hillingdon to the west, Ealing to the south, Brent to the south-east and Barnet to the east.-History:...
died on 8 June 1969 and on 8 January 1970 a Conservative councillor for Hammersmith
London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham is a London borough in West London, and forms part of Inner London. Traversed by the east-west main roads of the A4 Great West Road and the A40 Westway, many international corporations have offices in the borough....
was disqualified after failing to attend a meeting of the GLC or its committees for six months.