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The Epic Interactive Encyclopedia 1998
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Epic Interactive Encyclopedia, The - 1998 Edition (1998)(Epic Marketing).iso
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Local_government
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1992-09-03
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That part of government dealing mainly with
matters concerning the inhabitants of a
particular area or town, usually financed at
least in part by local taxes. In the USA and
UK local government has had comparatively
large powers and responsibilities. In
European countries such as France, West
Germany, and the USSR, local government has
tended historically to be more centrally
controlled than in Britain, although German
cities have a tradition of independent
action, as exemplified in Berlin, and France
from 1969 moved towards regional
decentralization. In the USA the system shows
evidence of the early type of settlement (for
example in New England the town is the unit
of local government, in the South the county,
and in the N central states the combined
county and township). A complication is the
tendency to delegate power to special
authorities in such fields as education. In
Australia, although an integrated system
similar to the British was planned, the
scattered nature of settlement, apart from
the major towns, has prevented implementation
of any uniform tiered arrangement. England
and Wales are divided into counties (Scotland
into regions) and these are subdivided into
districts. history The system of local
government in England developed haphazardly;
in the 18th century it varied in the towns
between democratic survivals of the guild
system and the narrow rule of small
oligarchies. The Municipal Reform Act 1835
established the rule of elected councils,
although their actual powers remained small.
In country areas local government remained in
the hands of the justices of the peace (JPs)
assembled in quarter sessions, until the
Local Government Act 1888 set up county
councils. These were given a measure of
control over the internal local authorities,
except the major bodies, which were
constituted as county boroughs. The Local
Government Act 1894 set up urban and rural
district councils and, in the rural districts
only, parish councils. Under the Local
Government Act 1972 the upper range of local
government for England and Wales was
established on a two-tier basis, with 46
counties in England and eight in Wales.
London and six other English cities were
created metropolitan areas (their
metropolitan county councils were abolished
in 1986, and their already limited functions
redistributed to metropolitan district
councils), and the counties had county
councils. The counties were subdivided into
districts (of which there are 300, each with
a district council, replacing the former
county borough, borough, and urban and rural
district councils) and then, in rural areas,
into parishes and, in Wales, into
`communities' across the country, each again
with its own council (see parish council)
dealing with local matters. Under the Local
Government Act 1974 a Commission for Local
Administration for England and Wales was set
up, creating an ombudsman for complaints
about local government. Under the Local
Government (Scotland) Act 1973 Scotland was
divided into regions (nine) and island areas,
rather than counties; these are subdivided
into districts, which may in turn have
subsidiary community councils, but the latter
are not statutory bodies with claims on
public funds as of right. Northern Ireland
has a single-tier system of 26 district
councils. The activities of local government
are financed largely by a local tax per head
of population, known as the community charge
or poll tax, introduced 1989 in Scotland and
1990 in England and Wales. The poll tax
replaced local property taxes known as rates;
it is subsidized by central government (see
under rate support grant). In the mid-1980s
the Thatcher administration sought to remove
many services from the aegis of local
authorities and offer them for tender to
private companies; thus in many areas
school-meals provision was privatized, as
were maintenance of council vehicles, street
cleaning, and upkeep of parks and sports
facilities. In 1987 a code of practice was
issued to restrict the ability of local
authorities to promote `partisan' activities.