Jobs at risk in council mergers: Labor - Sydney Morning Herald

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Jobs would be slashed and services cut if NSW councils are forced to merge, the state Opposition says.

There are fears the State Government is poised to force councils to amalgamate following an independent review which has found local government should be consolidated.

Premier Barry O'Farrell ruled out forced council mergers before last year's election. However reports today suggested that the ongoing review will back involuntary amalgamations in some instances, and that the Local Government minister, Don Page, would support the recommendations and take them to cabinet.

The Opposition leader, John Robertson, said on Tuesday the government was preparing to break its election promise.

"Forcing councils to merge will have a disastrous impact in local communities and see thousands of local government jobs axed and vital local services cut,” he said.

“Ratepayers want the O'Farrell Government to improve service delivery and upgrade their community centres, swimming pools, sporting fields, libraries and local roads – not force councils to merge so they can cut services and jobs.”

A spokesman for the acting Local Government Minister, Robyn Parker, said the government had not made a decision to amalgamate councils.

The independent panel was due to report to the minister in July, and the government would not "pre-empt its outcome", he said.

The Opposition's local government spokeswoman, Sophie Cotsis, said council mergers in Victoria and Queensland had led to increased council rates.

In a report released last month, the Independent Local Government Review Panel, which is continuing to examine ways to strengthen NSW councils, said evidence suggested the state had too many councils.

It acknowledged that boundary change can be “disruptive and costly” and that merging weak or unsustainable councils may simply replicate the problem.

The report cited evidence showing that increased scale could bring better efficiency and cost savings for some council functions, such as infrastructure and back office services.

The panel noted that its terms of reference required it to consider the government's pledge not to force amalgamations, and it would be “examining barriers and incentives to encourage voluntary boundary change”.

The Leichhardt mayor, Darcy Byrne, said the pursuit of forced amalgamations would be a “breach of faith with the people of NSW”, adding that the government did not have a mandate to merge councils.

Before coming to power, the Coalition “adopted a timid, small target election strategy which made no mention of heavy handed Council amalgamations”, Cr Byrne said.