The Mayor has a key role in delivering strategic planning for London.

The Mayor's strategic planning role

The Mayor is responsible for London's planning at a strategic level. The 33 London boroughs are the local planning authorities for their areas. The London Thames Gateway Development Corporation and the Olympic Delivery Authority are the local planning authorities for parts of east London.

The Greater London Authority Acts 1999 and 2007 require the boroughs to consult the Mayor of London on planning applications that are of potential strategic importance to London, as defined by the government and set out in the following order:

The Town and Country Planning (Mayor of London) Order 2008 PDF (opens in new window)

The Mayor is required to provide a statement of compliance with the London Plan, within six weeks. Once the planning authority has resolved to determine the application it is required to refer it back to the Mayor to allow him to decide whether to direct refusal, take over the application for his own determination or allow the planning authority's decision to stand.

The Mayor's role in Local Development Documents

The London boroughs consult the Mayor on their Local Development Frameworks including Local Development Schemes and Local Development Documents. The Mayor approves the LDSs, and provides a statement whether he considers each LDD to be in general conformity with the London Plan.

The London Assembly

The Assembly holds the Mayor of London to account and investigates issues that matter to Londoners. The 25 London Assembly members are elected at the same time as the Mayor.

The Assembly directly questions the Mayor about his activities, strategies and decisions. It publishes the findings and recommendations from its investigations and makes proposals to the Mayor.

The Assembly also has a dedicated Planning and Housing Committee.