Aylmer Frederick Henry Howard Hartley Russell 1968-1971 Richard Henry Carilef Seymour 1971-1974 New Berkshire County Council (1974-1998) Frederick Derwent Pickering 1974-1977 Conservative Lt. Col. Richard Watt 1977-1980 Conservative Lewis David Moss 1980-1982 Conservative W.T. Timperley 1982-1983 Labour Ian Morgan 1983-1986 Conservative Frederick Gareth Robert Gimblett 1986-1989 Conservative William Anthony Wiseman (‘Tony Wiseman’) 1989-1992 Conservative Ronald James Day 1992-1995 Liberal Democrat C.C. Trembath 1995-1998 Liberal Democrat Abolition and creation of the Unitary Authorities The 1990s led to the restoration of county boroughs under a new name, "unitary authorities", which radically changed the administrative map of England. The Banham Review of 1992 sought to consolidate local authorities where possible and abolish unnecessary tiers of government. The changes to Berkshire County Council in 1998 were part of the final wave of changes resulting from the act. The council was abolished, and the ceremonial county is now governed by the six unitary authorities: West Berkshire, Windsor and Maidenhead, Wokingham, Bracknell Forest, Reading and Slough. The general secretary of the National Association of Local Government Officers described the re-organisation as a "completely cynical manoeuvre". Aftermath One of the last Chairmen of Berkshire County Council, Tony Wiseman, went on to found CRAG (a combination of the Readingstoke Action Group and CPRE) with a number of other former members of the council. CRAG successfully opposed Wokingham borough council's plan for building of houses between Reading and Basingstoke (to create a conurbation dubbed Readingstoke). After the abolition and until the 2009 local government reforms, the ceremonial county of Berkshire was unique in England as being the only non-metropolitan county to have no County Council throughout its entire area, with the entire county governed by unitary authorities. Powers and composition As stated above, under the Local Government Act 1972 the chief responsibilities of Berkshire County Council, in common with other non-metropolitan county authorities, included education, social services, public transport, planning, emergency services and waste disposal. It served to provide a strategic county-wide framework within which the differing plans of its six district councils could be harmonised. As with many County Councils, the Local Government Act 1972 changed the structure of the council, and a large area around Abingdon and the Vale of the White Horse became part of Oxfordshire while Slough, which had been within Buckinghamshire, became part of Berkshire. The former County Borough of Reading - which had been part of the historic assize and ceremonial county -