A group of shires in Western Australia have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to share staff and services. The idea is to avoid amalgamation.
It's co-operation without a co-operative.
The shires are Beverley, Brookton, Cunderdin, Quairading and York.
While the Western Australian Government has said that there will be no forced amalgamations, the shires aren't too certain. It also depends, of course, on what you define as forced.