Local government

Local governments are administrative offices of an area smaller than a state or province. The term is used to contrast with offices at nation-state level, which are referred to as the central government, national government, or (where appropriate) federal government.

In modern nations, local governments usually have less powers than national governments do. They usually have some power to raise taxes, though these may be limited by central legislation. In some countries local government is partly or wholly funded by subventions from central government taxation. The question of Municipal Autonomy - which powers the local government has, or should have, and why - is a key question of public administration and governance.

The institutions of local government vary greatly between countries, and even where similar arrangements exist, the terminology often varies. Common names for local government entities include state, province, region, department, county, prefecture, district, city, township, town, borough, parish, municipality, shire and village. However all these names are often used informally in countries where they do not describe a legal local government entity.

Main articles on each country will usually contain some information about local government, or links to an article with fuller information. The rest of this article gives information or links for countries where a relatively full description is available.

Australia

As a federal country, Australia has a number of States and Territories with wide ranging powers, and a lower tier of Local Governments. These arrangements are described in the articles States and territories of Australia and Local Government in Australia

France

According to its constitution, France has 3 levels of local government :

22 Régions and 4 Régions d'outre-mer (Réunion, Martinique, Guadeloupe and French Guiana).

96 départements and 4 départements d'outre-mer (Réunion, Guadeloupe, Martinique and French Guiana).

There are 36 679 municipalities (in French: Communes).

However, intercommunalities are now a level of government between municipalities and departements.

Corsica and Paris (both a commune and a département) are local government sui generis.

Germany

As a federal country, Germany is divided into a number of states (Länder in German), which used to have wide powers, but whose main remaining power today (2004) is their ability to veto federal laws through their Bundesrat representation. The system of local government is described in the article on States of Germany.

Israel

The Israeli Ministry of Interior recognizes four types of local government in Israel:

Cities - 71 single-level urban municipalities, usually with populations exceeding 20 000 residents.

Local councils - 141 single-level urban or rural municipalities, usually with populations between 2,000 and 20,000.

Regional Councils - 54 bi-level municiplaties which govern multiple rural communities located in relative geographic vicinity. The number of residents in the individual communities usually does not exceed 2000. There are no clear limits to the population and land area size of Israeli regional councils.

Industrial councils - 2 single-level municipalities which govern large and complex industrial areas outside cities. The local industrial councils are Tefen in Upper Galilee (north of Karmiel) and Ramat Hovav in the Negev (south of Beer Sheva).

Italy

The Italian Constitution defines four levels of local government:

Regions: At present 5 of them (Valle d'Aosta, Friuli, Trentino, Sardinia and Sicily) have a special status and are given more power than the others. The new Constitution, if confirmed, would give even more power to these bodies.

Provinces: They mostly care to roads, forests, and education. They had more power in the past.

Communes: The Mayor and his staff, caring for the needs of a single town.

Some city also have an extra tier of local government, the Quartier Concil (Consiglio di Quartiere).

Japan

Since the Meiji restoration, Japan has had a simple and clear local government system.

First, Japan is divided into 47 prefectures. Each prefecture comprises cities, villages and towns. In Hokkaido, Nagasaki and Okinawa, there are branches of the prefectural government sometimes referred to as "Subprefectures".

New Zealand

New Zealand has two tiers of authorities. The top tier comprises the regional councils. The second tier is the territorial authorities consisting of city councils, district councils and one island council. Four territorial authorities are unitary authorities, in that they also perform the functions of a regional council.

Nigeria

Nigeria has three tiers of government. The top tier is the federal, which has the Executive, Legislative and Judiciary. The second tier contains the States of the federation. There are currently 36 states in Nigeria. The third tier is the Local Government. There are 774 local governments in Nigeria.

Philippines

For a description of the arrangements in force, see the section on Regions and Provinces in the article on the Philippines. Institute of Development Management and Governance ^*

United Kingdom

Main article: Local government in the United Kingdom

The system of local government is different in the four countries of the United Kingdom.

England

The most complex system is in England, the result of numerous attempts at reform and reorganisation over the centuries.

Above the level considered here is the European Union, the United Kingdom and whatever government offices may exist for England as a whole. England currently has no elected officials responsible solely for the entire country.

The top level of local government within England is now the region. There are nine regions including Greater London, which in some ways is a unique case. Each region has a government office and assorted other institutions. Regions appear to have been introduced in their present form around 1994 and the policy of the current administration is to increase their power, including the introduction of elected assemblies where desired. The 'regionalisation of England' is disliked by many people and is commonly seen as an unnecessary concept - only one regional referendum has been held to date in the north-east of England, which was soundly rejected by the electorate.

The layers of government below the regions are mixed. Traditional counties still exist, although in the 1990s some of the districts within the counties became separate unitary authorities and a few counties have been disbanded completely. There are also metropolitan districts in some areas which are similar to unitary authorities. In Greater London there are London boroughs which are a similar concept.

Counties are further divided into districts (also known as boroughs in some areas).

Districts are divided into wards for electoral purposes.

Districts may also contain parishes and town council areas with a small administration of their own.

Other area classifications are also in use, such as health service and Lord-Lieutenant areas.

Wales

Wales has a uniform system of unitary authorities, referred to as counties or county boroughs. There are also communities, equivalent to parishes.

Scotland

Local government in Scotland is arranged on the lines of unitary authorities, with the nation divided into 32 council areas.

United States

Local government of the United States refers to the governments at the city, town, village, or civil township level in the United States of America. In the more general sense, local government also refers to state government, regional government, and county government.

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