The Scottish Government has no plans to merge councils, the First Minister has confirmed.
Alex Salmond told MSPs that necessary reform of local government did not have to mean boundary changes.
His comments at First Minister's Questions on Thursday follow remarks from the Justice Secretary last week which raised concerns about the future of Scotland's 32 councils.
Mr Salmond said: "We have no plans to merge local authorities or to change the structure of local government.
"Necessary reform of local government doesn't necessarily mean changing boundaries. It also involves the integration of services."
Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill was asked about the future of local authorities and health boards at the International Policing Conference last week, given that Scotland's eight police forces have been merged into one.
He said: "Where the police are, where they have gone, I think, some of my colleagues will look to learn from.
"The status quo is not tenable. It was not tenable in the police and it's not going to be tenable in other forms of public life."
