Leicester City Council | |
---|---|
Executive mayor elected every four years Whole council elected every four years |
|
Coat of arms
|
|
Type | |
Type | |
Houses | Unicameral |
Term limits
|
None |
History | |
Founded | 1 April 1974 |
New session started
|
May 2015 (Municipal year 2015/2016) |
Leadership | |
Stephen Corrall
Since May 2016 |
|
Peter Soulsby, Labour
Since 6 May 2011 |
|
Seats | 1 executive mayor 54 councillors |
Elections | |
Council voting system
|
Plurality-at-large |
Mayor voting system
|
Supplementary vote |
Leicester City Council is a unitary authority responsible for local government in the city of Leicester, England. It consists of 54 councillors, representing 22 wards in the city, overseen by a directly elected mayor. It is currently controlled by the Labour Party and has been led by Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby since his election on 6 May 2011. The main council building is City Hall on Charles Street, but council meetings are held in the 19th-century Town Hall.
As a unitary authority, the council is responsible for running nearly all local services in Leicester with the exception of the Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service and Leicestershire Constabulary which are run by joint boards with Leicestershire County Council and Rutland County Council.
The Council traces its roots to the Corporation of Leicester, and before then to the Merchant Gild and the Portmanmoot. The Portmanmoot consisted of 24 Jurats, elected from the burgesses (members of the Gild Merchant, or ), along with two bailiffs, and a clerk. It appears to have existed before the Norman Conquest in 1066. In 1209, the lead member of the Portmanmoot, the Alderman, became known as a mayor. The Gild Merchant and the Moot overlapped in membership and had probably become effectively merged in the 14th century. Membership of the Twenty-Four appears to have been by co-option, chosen by themselves.