Slash number of councils to four– CBI chief
THE chairman of employers’ body the CBI in Wales, Mike Plaut, has called for a radical reduction in the number of local authorities in Wales to just four.
Writing for the Western Mail, entrepreneur Mr Plaut said as a small nation Wales simply can no longer afford the financial costs of the current model of 22 separate councils.
In the latest attempt from the Welsh Government to streamline the local authority map of Wales, against the backdrop of real term budget cuts and increasing demand on public services, Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Public Services, Alun Davies, last month called on local authorities to bring forward voluntary merger plans – but with the stick that if they don’t reorganise then change could be enacted upon them.
Out to consultation Mr Davies’ plans could see the number reduced by just over a half to 10.
Radical cut in number of Welsh councils to as few as 10 announced
However, as part of informing that debate, Mr Plaut has gone further than the previous position of the CBI, which suggested a reduction from the current 22 to around just 8, to just four:
■ covering the local authorities of Cardiff, the Vale of Glamorgan, Newport, Monmouthshire, Torfaen, Blaenau Gwent, Merthyr, Rhondda Cynon Taff, Caerphilly and Bridgend;
■ covering local authorities of Swansea, Neath Port Talbot, Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire;
■ covering the local authorities Powys and Ceredigion;
■ covering Gwynedd and Flintshire. Conwy, Anglesey, Wrexham and Denbighshire.
Mr Plaut’s position, which at this stage is not the official position of the CBI but a move to inform the debate, is in recognition of the emergence of city regions in south Wales with the Cardiff Capital and Swansea Bay city regions – driven by their respective City Deals – and for mid Wales and north Wales, where respective Growth Deals bids have been made to the UK Government.
Mr Plaut said: “With Brexit on the horizon, we need strong, dynamic and modern councils.
“In response to Mr Davies’ call for a debate, I believe the Welsh Government should seriously evaluate reducing the number of councils in Wales to four.
“This is already the direction of travel and such a structure could mirror the geographic context of the City Deals and emerging Growth Deals. The result would be: a council for south east Wales, south west Wales, mid Wales and north Wales.
“With four police force areas, three fire and rescue services, three regional skills partnerships and seven health boards, Wales has already shown this can be done.
“A council for south east Wales, for example, would have a population of around 1.4 million – similar to Birmingham.
“A mid Wales council would have a population of just 200,000 and north Wales over 600,000.”