A Handy Guide to How Sydney's New Local Councils Will Look

It's been on the chopping block for months now, but NSW Premier Mike Baird has finally dropped the axe. Numerous local councils are set to be swallowed up, with the NSW government moving ahead with 19 forced council amalgamations despite the controversial reform plans facing considerable opposition. So how's it going to look? Here's a handy breakdown you can take to your furious pub debate later.

The mergers, which were first proposed late last year in the wake of a report from the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal, could save ratepayers close to $2 billion over the next two decades, according to Baird. However critics have decried the process as undemocratic.

The amalgamated councils, which include a combined council for Canterbury and Bankstown, and a single body for the entirety of the Northern Beaches (previously Manly, Pittwater and Warringah), have a target population size of 150,000 people each. Additionally, each new council will receive up to $10 million to cover the cost of merging along with up to $15 million to invest in community infrastructure, and will be presided over by administrators and interim general managers until elections are held in September next year.

That last point has proved controversial, with outgoing Leichhardt mayor Darcy Byrne putting it in words we can all understand. "Winter has come to the inner west and like Ned Stark the heads of democratically elected representatives have been chopped off," said Byrne according to The Sydney Morning Herald. Would have been nice if he'd included a spoiler warning, but you get the point he's trying to make.

The government intends to merge a further nine councils pending the outcome of legal action on behalf on the councils under threat, including Botany and Rockdale; Randwick, Waverley and Woollahra; and Mosman, North Sydney and Willoughby.

The original proposal included 35 amalgamations, with the intention of reducing the total number of councils in the state from 152 to 112. The decision to shy away from a number of mergers, such as between Hills and Hawkesbury Shire, Kiama and Shoalhaven, and Walcha and Tamworth, has led some to accuse the government of attempting to placate voters in marginal seats ahead of the upcoming Federal Election — a charge the government has naturally denied.

We expect you haven't heard the last of this story, and who knows how much will actually stick. In the meantime, however, say hello to your new local councils.

NEW COUNCILS

Armidale Regional Council (previously Armidale, Dumaresq and Guyra)

Canterbury-Bankstown Council (previously Bankstown and Canterbury)

Central Coast Council (previously Gosford and Wyong)

City of Parramatta Council (previously Parramatta and sections of Hills, Auburn, Holroyd and Hornsby)

Cumberland Council (previously Auburn and Holroyd)

Edward River Council (previously Conargo and Deniliquin)

Federation Council (previously Corowa and Urana)

Georges River Council (previously Hurstville and Kogarah)

Gundagai Council (previously Cootamundra and Gundagai)

Hilltops Council (previously Boorowa, Harden and Young)

Inner West Council (previously Ashfield, Leichhardt and Marrickville)

Mid-Coast Council (previously Gloucester, Great Lakes and Greater Taree)

Murray River Council (previously Murray and Wakool)

Murrumbidgee Council (previously Jerilderie and Murrumbidgee)

Northern Beaches Council (previously Manly, Pittwater and Warringah)

Queanbeyan-Palerange Regional Council (previously Queanbeyan and Palerang)

Snowy Monaro Regional Council (previously Bombala, Cooma Monaro and Snowy River)

Snowy Valleys Council (previously Tumut and Tumbarumba)

Western Plains Regional Council (previously Dubbo and Wellington)

PENDING LEGAL ACTION

Bathurst and Oberon

Blayney, Cabonne and Orange

Botany and Rockdale

Burwood, Canada Bay and Strathfield

Hunters Hill, Lane Cove and Ryde

Hornsby and Ku-ring-gai and

Mosman, North Sydney and Willoughby

Randwick, Waverley and Woollahra

Shellharbour and Wollongong

Via SMH. Image: Seb Zurcher.