Two local authorities have been praised by a government minister for their cost-cutting programme of collaboration.

Andrew Stunell MP, the parliamentary under secretary of state for communities and local government, described the work of Watford Borough Council and Three Rivers District Council as an example for the rest of the country to follow during a visit on Monday.

The authorities have made annual savings of about £1.5million between them since embarking on a programme of shared services in departments including HR, IT, finance, and benefits.

The Liberal Democrat MP said: "What it showed is that there has been a great deal of hard work done by both council's for a number of years to bring this project to a successful end.

"It is going to safeguard services and reduce costs. From my point of view it underlined how, when councils work together, they can do both of those things.

"They impressed on me that this is not something that can be rushed. We're very keen that other authorities learn from their experience."

Mr Stunnell, who was shown a presentation on the project, met with Watford Mayor Dorothy Thornhill and portfolio holder for finance at Three Rivers District Council, Councillor Matthew Bedford.

Although redundancies have been made at Watford Borough Council, none have come as a result of the shared services programme, according to council bosses.

Mayor Thornhill said: "It is not as easy as people think but it is the way forward. We have created end services that are more resilient."