COUNCIL tax bills slashed by just under £30 thanks to police mergers, read some future headlines in the Worcester News. We live in hope - wouldn't it be wonderful if such a daydream became reality? Well, according to calculations made by West Mercia Police Authority finance chiefs such a scenario might well emerge if their constabulary merged into a West Midlands super-force.

The people who hold the purse-strings argue that if the costs of the new force were shared across the region, then the police precept for Band D council tax payers would fall from £143 to £115.

That's fine by us. This newspaper believes that any measure to reduce the increasingly unfair burden of this levy should be taken without delay. Whatever helps to end the glaring disparity of the current system is to be welcomed.

Nevertheless, we would sound a note of caution. We are not naive enough to believe that a bunch of figures suddenly pulled out of the hat will necessarily translate into reduced bills.

For example, why have the maths only just emerged? And are there those who believe this might be the ace pulled out of the corporate sleeve, a card that will clinch this particular game?

We're also mindful that our regional MPs are almost entirely opposed to the creation of a super-force. It is very rare for politicians who usually gaze out across ideological divides to unite on a matter.

We will just have to wait and see if words actually become actions.