Councils face ‘difficult conversations' with voters in future because forthcoming powers could lead to the decommissioning of public health services to meet local priorities, the country's most senior council leader has warned.

Sir Merrick Cockell, chair of the Local Government Association, told The MJ this week that plans to devolve to councils control over a £2bn-plus public health budget from April 2013 could lead authorities to cut some existing primary care trust (PCT)-led services so they could prioritise other local health programmes.