Any reformation of Tayside Regional Council would “swallow up” the needs of its smaller towns, according to Angus Council’s current leader.
Councillor Bob Myles spoke after several parties advocated mergers of certain local authorities as a means of retaining service standards in the face of looming budget cuts.
The discussion was initiated after eight west of Scotland councils announced that they were to begin sharing certain services, such as health and social care, waste management, social transport and IT.
However, Mr Myles feels that the current “cooperative but not amalgamative” relationship Angus Council has with Dundee City Council and Perth and Kinross Council is best placed to serve the needs of the people living in the county.
He said, “I feel that at the moment Angus is getting a good deal in the way council services are delivered. It’s not my decision to make whether or not we should go back to a Tayside council, but I feel that if we did, it would be slightly more removed from the people of Angus and what they want.
“If it comes to making decisions, then population wise bigger areas like Dundee and Perth would dominate, and I think that smaller burghs, such as Brechin and Forfar, would suffer.
“We undoubtedly have a good working relationship with Dundee and Perth and Kinross, but at the moment I believe Angus Council is best placed to serve the interests of the people in Angus.”
The original Tayside Regional Council was disbanded 14 years ago under Scottish local government reforms.
However, some local politicians including Dundee’s deputy lord provost Ian Borthwick have recently said that it is “inevitable” the three authorities will reunify in the wake of crippling financial pressures.
Mr Myles insisted that this might not be necessary as Tayside was currently “leading the way” as regards shared services through Tayside Contracts and the Tayside Procurement Consortium.
He added, “We are looking at ways we can share further services, but it isn’t as simple as it is for the councils in the Glasgow area as there is a greater geographical area for us to cover.”
“I do think one way of saving money in the current climate would be to have fewer politicians. Perhaps not fewer councillors, but certainly fewer MPs and MSPs. Councillors, people often find, are far more effective in what they do than these other layers of government.”