Thirty years ago, the 1985 Local Government Act was passed, abolishing the Greater London Council (GLC) and the six metropolitan county councils (MCCs).

The latter were unfortunate in that the Government's primary motive was getting rid of the GLC. The MCCs were included because of the similarity in their role and powers to those of the GLC. All of these authorities, the government argued, constituted ‘a wasteful and unnecessary tier of government'.