The Tasman Council has voted against a proposed merge with Sorell.

The ‘no’ vote has been seen as a setback to the State Government's attempt to reduce the number of councils in Tasmania without forced amalgamations.

The vote was three in favour, four against. Mayor Roseanne Heyward was a strong supporter of merging.

Earlier this week, Sorell voted unanimously that the two should join.

The case for the amalgamation revolved around an estimated $250,000 in annual savings for the merged councils and the chance of extra resources to help manage future growth.

A recent Local Government Board Report detailed the difference between the town regions.

“Sorell being a fast growing and younger population, compared with Tasman which has low population growth and a relatively older population,” the report stated.

Tasman is home to the Port Arthur tourist attraction, but has just 3,392 rateable properties from which to fund the infrastructure for more than 300,000 tourists each year.

By not merging, Tasman will continue to face that challenge on their own.

The Tasmanian Government wants fewer councils but has committed to not forcing any amalgamations.

The policy has seen no change in the number of local government areas as the Government enters its second term.

Tasmania still has 29 councils for its population of 520,000, while Brisbane City Council, for contrast, has 1.2 million.