Barnett puts Perth council mergers on hold

Ratepayer power has halted the mergers of Perth local councils.

West Australian Premier Colin Barnett has put on hold plans to halve the number of metropolitan governments following votes in Kwinana, South Perth and East Fremantle on Saturday to leave the councils as they are.

The Town of Victoria Park and the City of Cockburn also polled ratepayers but did not receive the 50 per cent turnout required to be valid.

However, because the election results in Kwinana and South Perth affected Cockburn and Victoria Park, respectively, the four councils and East Fremantle have been spared amalgamation.

The vote also halts plans to merge the City of Fremantle - which did not hold a vote - with East Fremantle.

Perth's remaining councils could not vote under the Local Government Act because they are subject to "boundary adjustments", not amalgamations.

The mergers were set to take place from July 1, but Mr Barnett has put the plan on hold.

"I've failed. I've put up the white flag," he told ABC radio on Tuesday.

"If ratepayers want to stay the way they are, so be it."

Mr Barnett later said he still thought Perth needed fewer than 20 councils to be functional and he would focus on expanding the City of Perth's boundaries move with local government.

Opposition Leader Mark McGowan said the local government reform policy had been a "train wreck".

"It's cost taxpayers and ratepayers across Western Australia tens and tens of millions of dollars for no outcome," Mr McGowan said.