The thirty-two
London boroughs were established in 1965 by the
London Government Act 1963. They are the principal authorities in Greater London and have responsibilities including education, housing, planning, highways, social services, libraries, recreation, waste, environmental health and revenue collection. Some of the powers are shared with the
Greater London Authority, which also manages passenger transport, police, and fire. Barnet has been controlled by the
Conservative Party for most of the council's existence, with
Labour Party leading during a period of
no overall control between 1994 and 2002, and Labour having an outright majority on the council since 2022. In the most recent prior election in 2022, Labour won 41 seats and the Conservatives won 22, with Labour receiving 43.0% and the Conservatives receiving 35.1% of the overall vote. Although neither won any seats, the
Green Party won 9.9% of the vote across the borough and the
Liberal Democrats won 9.4%. The incumbent leader of the council is Labour's Barry Rawlings, who has held the role since 2022.
Council term Four councillors have switched allegiance during the council term, with Labour's Linda Lusingu leaving the party in January 2023 and later joining the Green Party in February 2026, and the Conservative Laithe Jajeh leaving in March 2024. Conservative councillor Mark Shooter defected to
Reform UK in November 2024, and was joined in Reform by the former Conservative council leader
Dan Thomas in June 2025. Thomas later resigned from the council on the 31st December 2025, becoming
Reform's Welsh Leader in February 2026, leaving a vacant seat heading into the 2026 election. Jajeh was disqualified in April 2026 after not attending any meetings of the council for six months. ==Electoral process==