Councils in Wales are banding together to tender for a public protection software solution.

Today, 19 out of 22 local authorities in the principality have launched a £3m tender for a framework agreement.

The framework will appoint just one supplier, and will allow participating authorities, along with other public bodies to appoint this provider to provide them with a specialist solution.

The tender has been released by Pembrokeshire County Council on behalf of the Welsh Purchasing Consortium.

An initial scoping exercise led to 19 authorities expressing interest in using such a framework, with no response from the other three.

Public protection services generally relate to air and water quality, animal health and welfare, food safety and standards, health development, health and safety at work, along with licensing and trading standards.

However, the tender document does not specify the exact scope of the proposed framework.

The four year contract could be worth £3m but the tender made it clear there is no guarantee of work for the successful supplier.

The closing date for responses to the tender is on 6 November.

The Welsh Purchasing Consortium has been in existence since 1974 and was reformed following local government reorganisation in 1996.

In 2008 WPC membership increased to include the sixteen Unitary Authorities in south, mid and west Wales and from January 2014 the Consortium also includes the three unitary authorities in north east Wales.