 From the late 1950s , the radical reform of local government in Wales was considered more pressing than that in England , due to the small size of many of the existing authorities , especially the upper tier county councils . The Local Government Commission for Wales set up in 1958 was the first to recommend wholesale amalgamation of the administrative counties outside Glamorgan and Monmouthshire , with extensive boundary changes ; however the then Minister of Housing and Local Government Sir Keith Joseph decided not to accept the report , noting that county amalgamations in England had been highly unpopular when proposed . 
