WELSH councils have been told they will not be forced into controversial mergers but have been warned that more services must be delivered through regional partnerships.

Mark Drakeford, the Cabinet secretary for finance and local government, confirmed that the proposals to merge councils, which would have seen Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire merged to reform Dyfed, had been abandoned.

But he said with public spending being cut there needs to be changes to how services are provided across Wales.

He said councils would have to work together to provide services on a regional basis, saying that while many councils, including Ceredigion, already work in partnership with other authorities, that would now be mandatory.

Speaking to Assembly Members, Mr Drakeford said following talks with authorities across Wales he had decided to scrap plans for forced mergers.

He said: “Austerity creates pressures and one of the key questions for me is how we can make our local authorities more resilient to deal with these pressures. That’s why local government reform is a requirement, not a choice.

“Over the summer I visited all 22 local authorities and met with the Welsh Local Government Association, trades unions and others.

“I have listened to their views and we now have an approach on a possible way forward. This would retain existing local authorities - the ‘front door’ through which people access services - but with key services being delivered regionally."

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