Editing Greater Manchester (section)

==Governance==
{{Main|Mayor of Greater Manchester|Greater Manchester Combined Authority}}
{{See also|List of civil parishes in Greater Manchester|High Sheriff of Greater Manchester}}
[[File:Andy Burnham2.jpg|thumb|upright|Andy Burnham has served as the inaugural Mayor of Greater Manchester since May 2017.]]
The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) is the top-tier administrative body for the local governance of Greater Manchester. It was established on 1 April 2011 as a pilot [[combined authority]], unique to [[local government in the United Kingdom]].<ref name=GMCA1/> Upon formation, it consisted of ten [[Indirect election|indirectly elected]] members, each a directly elected councillor from one of the ten metropolitan boroughs that comprise Greater Manchester. The authority derives most of its powers from the [[Local Government Act 2000]] and [[Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009]],<ref name=GMCA1>{{cite web |url=http://www.agma.gov.uk/cms_media/files/greater_manchester_combined_authority_final_scheme.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101216012318/http://www.agma.gov.uk/cms_media/files/greater_manchester_combined_authority_final_scheme.pdf |archive-date=16 December 2010 |publisher=[[Association of Greater Manchester Authorities]] |date=March 2010 |access-date=30 March 2010 |title=Greater Manchester Combined Authority Final Scheme |url-status=dead}}</ref> and replaced a range of single-purpose joint boards and [[quango]]s in 2011, to provide a formal administrative authority for Greater Manchester with powers over public transport, skills, housing, regeneration, waste management, carbon neutrality and planning permission.<ref name=GMCA1/> Functional executive bodies, such as [[Transport for Greater Manchester]], are responsible for delivery of services in these areas.<ref name=GMCA1/> On 3 November 2014, the ''Devolution to the Greater Manchester Combined Authority agreement'' was signed to pass further powers and responsibilities, as well as the establishment of an elected Mayor of Greater Manchester.<ref>{{cite web |title=Devolution to the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and transition to a directly elected mayor |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/devolution-to-the-greater-manchester-combined-authority-and-transition-to-a-directly-elected-mayor |date=3 November 2014 |work=gov.uk |access-date=4 November 2014 |archive-date=4 November 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141104022317/https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/devolution-to-the-greater-manchester-combined-authority-and-transition-to-a-directly-elected-mayor |url-status=live}}</ref> From April 2016, Greater Manchester became the first area of England to "get full control of its health spending" with a devolution deal which unites the region's health and social care systems under one budget under the control of local leaders, including Greater Manchester's new directly elected mayor.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-31615218 |newspaper=BBC News |title=Greater Manchester to control £6bn NHS budget |date=25 February 2015 |access-date=26 February 2015 |archive-date=25 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150225182212/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-31615218 |url-status=live}}</ref> On 4 May 2017, [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]] politician [[Andy Burnham]] was [[2017 Greater Manchester mayoral election|elected as the inaugural mayor]],<ref>{{cite news |last1=Williams |first1=Jennifer |title=Andy Burnham elected as Greater Manchester's mayor |url=https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/andy-burnham-elected-greater-manchesters-12993211 |access-date=12 March 2018 |work=Manchester Evening News |date=5 May 2017 |archive-date=12 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180312143921/https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/andy-burnham-elected-greater-manchesters-12993211 |url-status=live}}</ref> joining the GMCA as its eleventh member and serving as its leader.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/the-mayor/ |publisher=greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk |title=What the Mayor does |access-date=5 April 2019 |date=2018 |archive-date=6 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190406025957/https://greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/the-mayor/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

Beneath the GMCA are the ten councils of Greater Manchester's ten [[Districts of England|districts]], which are [[Metropolitan Borough of Bolton|Bolton]], [[Metropolitan Borough of Bury|Bury]], the [[Manchester|City of Manchester]], [[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham|Oldham]], [[Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale|Rochdale]], the [[City of Salford]], [[Metropolitan Borough of Stockport|Stockport]], [[Tameside]], [[Trafford]] and [[Metropolitan Borough of Wigan|Wigan]]. These district councils have the greatest powers over public services, and control matters such as [[council tax]], education provision, social housing, libraries and healthcare. Eight of the ten metropolitan boroughs were named after the eight former county boroughs that now compose the largest centres of population and greater historical and political prominence.{{sfn|Frangopulo|1977|p=138}} As an example, the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport is centred on the town of [[Stockport]], a former county borough, but includes other smaller settlements, such as [[Cheadle, Greater Manchester|Cheadle]], [[Gatley]], and [[Bramhall]].{{sfn|Frangopulo|1977|p=138}} The names of two of the metropolitan boroughs were given a neutral name because, at the time they were created, there was no agreement on the town to be put forward as the administrative centre and neither had a [[county borough]]. These boroughs are [[Tameside]] and [[Trafford]], centred on [[Ashton-under-Lyne]] and [[Stretford]], respectively, and are named with reference to geographical and historical origins.{{sfn|Frangopulo|1977|p=138}} The lowest formal tier of local government in Greater Manchester are the [[Parish councils in England|parish council]]s, which cover the various [[List of civil parishes in Greater Manchester|civil parishes in Greater Manchester]], and have limited powers over upkeep, maintenance and small grants.

For the first 12&nbsp;years after the county was created in 1974, Greater Manchester had a two-tier system of local government, and the metropolitan borough councils shared power with the [[Greater Manchester County Council]].<ref name="politics">{{cite journal |last=Barlow |first=Max |title=Greater Manchester: conurbation complexity and local government structure |journal=[[Political Geography (journal)|Political Geography]] |volume=14 |issue=4 |pages=379–400 |doi=10.1016/0962-6298(95)95720-I |date=May 1995}}</ref> The Greater Manchester County Council, a strategic authority based in what is now Westminster House off [[Piccadilly Gardens]], comprised 106 members drawn from the ten metropolitan boroughs of Greater Manchester.{{sfn|Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council|p=65}} It was a sub-regional body running regional services such as transport, strategic planning, emergency services and waste disposal. In 1986, along with the five other [[metropolitan county]] councils and the [[Greater London Council]], the Greater Manchester County Council was abolished, and most of its powers were devolved to the boroughs.<ref name="politics"/> Between 1986 and 2011, the boroughs were effectively [[Unitary authorities of England|unitary authority areas]], but opted to co-operate voluntarily under the [[Association of Greater Manchester Authorities]] (AGMA), which served to create a co-ordinated county-wide approach to issues of common interest to Greater Manchester, such as public transport and the shared labour market, as well as making representations to central government and the European Union.

[[File:Bus stop D in Denton (geograph 3007109).jpg|thumb|left|A bus stop in [[Denton, Greater Manchester|Denton]] bearing the logo of [[Transport for Greater Manchester]] (TfGM). TfGM is a functional executive body of the [[Greater Manchester Combined Authority]] and has responsibilities for [[public transport]] in Greater Manchester.]]
Although used as a "successful brand",<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.birminghampost.net/news/west-midlands-news/2008/09/09/goodbye-west-midlands-hello-greater-birmingham-65233-21715497/ |publisher=birminghampost.net |work=[[Birmingham Post]] |last=Walker |first=Jonathan |date=9 September 2008 |access-date=24 September 2012 |title=Goodbye West Midlands, hello Greater Birmingham |archive-date=1 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120801080657/http://www.birminghampost.net/news/west-midlands-news/2008/09/09/goodbye-west-midlands-hello-greater-birmingham-65233-21715497/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> Greater Manchester's politics have been characterised by "entrenched [[localism (politics)|localism]] and related rivalries", historically resistant to [[Regionalism (politics)|regionalism]].{{sfn|Clapson|2010|pp=123–124}} The major towns in Greater Manchester retain a "fierce independence",{{sfn|Schofield|2003|pp=34–35}} meaning Greater Manchester is administered using "inter-municipal coordination" on a broadly voluntary basis.{{sfn|Clapson|2010|pp=123–124}} That eight of the ten borough councils have (for the most part) been [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]]-controlled since 1986, has helped maintain this informal co-operation between the districts at a county-level.{{sfn|Wannop|2002|p=148}} After the abolition of the county council, the ten authorities of Greater Manchester co-operated voluntarily on policy issues like [[Local Transport Plan]]s as well as funding the [[Greater Manchester County Record Office]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gmltp.co.uk |title=Greater Manchester Local Transport Plan |publisher=gmltp.co.uk |access-date=12 December 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720164951/http://www.gmltp.co.uk/ |archive-date=20 July 2011}}</ref> and local services were administered by statutory [[Local government in England#Joint arrangements|joint boards]]. Now under the direction of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, these joint boards are [[Transport for Greater Manchester]] (TfGM) which is responsible for planning and co-ordinating public transport across the county; the [[Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service]], who are administered by a joint Fire and Rescue Authority; and the [[Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority]]. These joint boards are made up of councillors appointed from each of the ten boroughs (except the Waste Disposal Authority, which does not include the [[Metropolitan Borough of Wigan]]). [[Greater Manchester Police]] was formerly overseen by a joint [[police authority]], but was briefly overseen by the [[Greater Manchester Police and Crime Commissioner]] from 2012<ref name=power>{{cite web |url=https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/incoming/gallery/introducing-new-police-commissioner-tony-669689 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121122042456/http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1593908_introducing-new-police-commissioner-tony-lloyd---the-most-powerful-man-in-greater-manchester |archive-date=22 November 2012 |title=Introducing new police commissioner Tony Lloyd – the most powerful man in Greater Manchester? |date=16 November 2012 |access-date=15 November 2021 |work=[[Manchester Evening News]]}}</ref> until the functions of that office were subsumed into the new regional mayoralty upon its creation in 2017. The ten borough councils are joint-owners of the [[Manchester Airport Group]] which controls [[Manchester Airport]] and three other UK airports.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-23513673 |title=Manchester Airports Group dividend windfall for councils |date=21 July 2013 |access-date=8 August 2013 |work=BBC News |archive-date=15 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141015104426/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-23513673 |url-status=live}}</ref> Other services are directly funded and managed by the local councils.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hebbert |first1=Michael |last2=Deas |first2=Iain |title=Greater Manchester – 'up and going'? |journal=Policy & Politics |volume=28 |issue=1 |pages=79–92 |doi=10.1332/0305573002500848 |date=January 2000}}</ref>

Greater Manchester is a [[ceremonial county]] with its own [[Lord-Lieutenant]] who is the personal representative of the monarch. The Local Government Act 1972 provided that the whole of the area to be covered by the new metropolitan county of Greater Manchester would also be included in the [[Duchy of Lancaster]]&nbsp;– extending the duchy to include areas which are historically in the counties of Cheshire and the West Riding of Yorkshire. Until 31 March 2005, Greater Manchester's [[Keeper of the Rolls]] was appointed by the [[Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster]]; they are now appointed by the [[Lord Chancellor|Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.duchyoflancaster.co.uk/output/Keeper-of-the-Rolls-1.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101215020920/http://www.duchyoflancaster.co.uk/output/Keeper-of-the-Rolls-1.aspx |archive-date=15 December 2010 |publisher=duchyoflancaster.co.uk |title=Keeper of the Rolls |author=[[Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster]] |access-date=2 March 2014}}</ref> The first Lord Lieutenant of Greater Manchester was Sir William Downward who held the title from 1974 to 1988.<ref>The Lord-Lieutenants Order 1973 (1973/1754)</ref> The current Lord Lieutenant is Warren James Smith.<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=58395 |date=18 July 2007 |page=10329 }}</ref> As a geographic county, Greater Manchester is used by the government (via the [[Office for National Statistics]]) for the gathering of county-wide statistics, and organising and collating general register and census material.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit_page.jsp?u_id=10056925&c_id=10001043 |title=Greater Manchester Met. C |publisher=visionofbritain.org.uk |access-date=6 April 2007 |archive-date=4 September 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070904091521/http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit_page.jsp?u_id=10056925&c_id=10001043 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In terms of representation in the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom]], Greater Manchester is divided into [[List of Parliamentary constituencies in Greater Manchester|27&nbsp;parliamentary constituencies]]. Most of Greater Manchester is represented in Parliament by the Labour Party, and is generally considered a Labour stronghold.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/119/119942_lib_dems_close_in_on_manchester.html |title=Lib Dems close in on Manchester |work=[[Manchester Evening News]] |date=11 June 2004 |access-date=26 February 2006 |archive-date=20 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230220000152/https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/lib-dems-close-in-on-manchester-1112068 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.timeout.com/manchester/feature/2009/4/Labour_party_returns_to_Manchester.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080113230651/http://www.timeout.com/manchester/feature/2009/4/Labour_party_returns_to_Manchester.html |archive-date=13 January 2008 |title=Labour party returns to Manchester |publisher=timeout.com |year=2006 |access-date=2 March 2014}}</ref>

The results of the [[2024 United Kingdom general election]] in Greater Manchester are as follows:

{| class="wikitable"
!colspan=2|Party
!Votes
!%
!Change from 2019
!Seats
!Change from 2019
|-
|{{Party name with colour|Labour Party (UK)}}
|471,074
|42.8%
|{{decrease}}5.1%
|25
|{{increase}}7
|-
|{{Party name with colour|Reform UK}}
|191,257
|17.4%
|{{increase}}11.9%
|0
|{{steady}}0
|-
|{{Party name with colour|Conservative Party (UK)}}
|173,735
|15.8%
|{{decrease}}19.1%
|0
|{{decrease}}9
|-
|{{Party name with colour|Liberal Democrats (UK)}}
|95,978
|8.7%
|{{decrease}}0.1%
|2
|{{increase}}2
|-
|{{Party name with colour|Green Party of England and Wales}}
|89,203
|8.1%
|{{increase}}5.7%
|0
|{{steady}}0
|-
|{{Party name with colour|Workers Party of Britain}}
|49,976
|4.5%
|''new''
|0
|{{steady}}0
|-
|
|Others
|29,520
|2.7%
|{{increase}}2.2%
|0
|{{steady}}0
|-
|colspan=2|'''Total'''
|'''1,100,743'''
|'''100.0'''
|
|'''27'''
|
|}