Wales’ 22 councils may only be merged voluntarily
WALES’ 22 councils may only be merged on a voluntary basis but will be expected to work more closely together on a regional basis, the Welsh Government has confirmed.
Under the proposals revealed by the Local Government minister in March, Anglesey would have been forced to join up with Gwynedd, Conwy with Denbighshire, and Wrexham would merge with Flintshire, leaving just 10 in the whole of Wales.
Powys would have been the only authority to remain unaffected, with Ceredigion also earmarked to join up with Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire.
But in a dramatic twist during the WLGA (Welsh Local Government Association) conference in Llandudno last month, minister Alun Davies made it clear that any future mergers would only take place voluntarily.
A greater emphasis on regional working was the message from previous Local Government Minister Mark Drakeford just a year ago, when he announced councils needed to place greater urgency into pooling back-office functions like wages, council tax administration and legal services in return for maintaining their autonomy.
Clarifying the government’s position further this week, Mr Davies confirmed a Local Government Bill will be introduced “at the earliest opportunity”, also establishing of an independent working group to take forward a “shared approach” with the WLGA.
With more than a hint that there will be an expectation that councils will work more closely together on a regional basis, the group will be chaired by Derek Vaughan MEP, a former leader of the WLGA.
Mr Davies said: “For a great deal of time many groups and individuals, including local government leaders, told me that the current system and structures were not sustainable.
“I want to work with local government on a shared vision for the future, and to jointly develop solutions to the challenges they face. Those challenges – about how we maintain progressive public services in the context of long-term austerity – are not going to go away.
“The consultation responses suggested there was an appetite amongst local government to work together to progress voluntary mergers and increase and improve regional working. I therefore intend to introduce the Local Government (Wales) Bill early next year to legislate to enable this to move ahead at the earliest opportunity.”