Mayors: Elections
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he is taking legislative steps to help improve alignment between Section 66(3)(c) of the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 and Section 21(1)(d) of the Greater London Authority Act 1999, in the context of the (a) eligibility of candidates who have received a custodial sentence following a criminal conviction to stand to be Mayor of London and (b) eligibility requirements for other metro mayoralties.
Answered by Nesil Caliskan
Police governance in London is different to that of areas outside London; in that the Mayor of London is not a Police and Crime Commissioner and has bespoke arrangements governing their oversight of the Metropolitan Police. Disqualification criteria for the Mayor of London are therefore governed by the Greater London Authority Act 1999, rather than the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011, or any other legislation.
In November 2025, the Government announced its intention to abolish the position of Police and Crime Commissioner across England and Wales, and where possible, have these functions absorbed by Strategic Authority Mayors. The Government intends to bring forward reforms in the Police Reform Bill as announced in the 2026 King's Speech to bring about these changes. This will consider disqualification criteria for post holders.
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