There are fears for 1,500 jobs when the plant closes

Anglesey and Gwynedd councils want millions of pounds invested by the Welsh Assembly Government.

They compared it to the economic renewal programme for the heads of the valleys in south Wales.

The assembly government said it was committed to long-term regeneration and had funded a study into the issue.

Anglesey council leader Gareth Winston Roberts said: "The two councils have got together to work on a 10-year employment strategy for the area, similar to the project being run in the Heads of the Valleys."

What we are working on here is a way to move forward Gareth Winston Roberts, council leader

The councils are worried about the effect on the local economy from the closure - in four years time - of the Wylfa power station on Anglesey.

The station is one of the major employers on Anglesey, along with the metal smelting plant Anglesey Aluminium in Holyhead, which it powers.

There are fears for 1,500 jobs if both close.

"It's always easy to look back but what we are working on here is a way to move forward," said Mr Roberts.

He said there was room for working with the university in Bangor to help attract businesses to the area.

A spokesman for the Welsh Assembly Government said no formal request from the two councils had yet been received, but they were "fully committed" to the re-generation of the area.

"We have funded a study into the long term re-generation of Anglesey, and we are working with the local authorities and public and private sector stake holders, to deliver on that commitment and bring opportunities to the area," the spokesman added.