Over the last few decades there have been several proposals to change the way local councils in Suffolk are structured - apart from a couple of district mergers little has changed.

But now the new Labour government is taking its turn to look at how councils operate here - and this time it feels different. Things really are about to change. Radically.

And to that news I give two and a half resounding cheers - local government in Suffolk and indeed Norfolk as well - is dysfunctional and needs a rocket inserted into it.

My only concern is that to achieve this there is bound to be a diminution in the level of democracy we enjoy.

But the fact is that there has always been a balance to be struck between democracy and efficiency and the current system is plainly not working well for anyone.

The proposals that are expected to be contained in the government's White Paper - and were widely leaked at the start of this week - look very promising.

Despite what the district and borough councils said in their statement earlier this week, the current two-tier system has failed the people of Suffolk and Norfolk . . . and it's getting worse.

It's a recipe for unnecessary bureaucracy and red tape. It stultifies dynamism. And it serves absolutely no one except the officers of the various authorities.

Take the Broomhill pool planning decision in Ipswich. It's been a game of ping-pong between the borough and county councils which hasn't been resolved for 11 months. The main aim of both sides appears to be to ensure they're not the ones blamed if the whole project fails!

Over recent months I've been very critical of the county council's proposed devolution deal with the previous government.

I was delighted when the new administration threw it out. That was a bit of pointless window dressing. The deal now being discussed is much, much better - the kind of thinking Suffolk needs.

Single tier councils responsible for all local services has to be the way forward. And a regional mayor covering Suffolk and Norfolk will provide precisely the strategic overview East Anglia needs.

To those complaining "we'll be dominated by Norfolk and Norwich" my message is clear - just look at the facts.

No one is saying you'll have to support Norwich City FC. But the fact is that if you look at the demographics of the region there is far, far more that unites Suffolk and Norfolk than divides them.

The barriers have already been broken down with the creation of the Waveney Valley constituency combining part of south Norfolk and north Suffolk. It works. The sky hasn't fallen in.

My one concern is the size of the unitary councils. From a cost-cutting point of view there is no question that unitary counties would be the most efficient.

But how would people feel about councillors from Haverhill having a say on planning decisions in Lowestoft?

More smaller unitaries might be closer to the voters - but would they be prepared to pay extra council tax to make up for the fact that there is more duplication between authorities?

It's a tough question and not one that I'm clear about in my own head.

But that is one of the questions that is likely to be hammered out in the consultations that will follow the publication of the White Paper.

One thing that is clear. The current government is going ahead with the unitary proposal and elected regional mayor.

It won't allow itself to be side-tracked by Conservative internal turf-wars between council leaders determined to be top-dog as previous attempts at reform have been.

Devolution without local government reform was always a bit like serving bread sauce without the turkey - this time it does look like we'll get the real deal on reform.

The opinions expressed in this column are the personal views of Paul Geater and do not necessarily reflect views held by this newspaper, its sister publications or its owner and publisher Newsquest Media Group Ltd.