Plans for a new national park in north Wales are likely to be shelved after a government minister told the Senedd he did not want to set it up.

Constitutional Minister Dafydd Trystan Davies said the Welsh government could achieve its environmental objectives "through alternative mechanisms", without the cost of establishing the proposed Glyndŵr National Park.

The national park had been proposed to cover the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley and would have been the first new national park in Wales since 1957.

A Labour Member of the Senedd (MS) accused Davies of a "lack of ambition" in axing the scheme and of ducking responsibility.

Davies told the Senedd on Tuesday: "The objectives identified through the designation process may be delivered through alternative mechanisms, without establishing a new National Park Authority and without incurring the financial commitments that the designation would require."

He said he would not proceed with the public local inquiry into creating the park, as had been promised by the previous Welsh Labour government, but said he wanted to hear views of others over a four-week period before making a final decision.

Davies noted the plan to create the park had been opposed by all councils in the areas the park would stretch across.

He also said it would have cost more than £11m to create the park.

His announcement in the Senedd was criticised by Labour MS Vikki Howells, who accused Davies of a "lack of ambition".

"Plaid Cymru, a party that says it wants to tackle the nature emergency, is not progressive when it comes to the environment or improving access to nature," she said.

Howells accused the minister of choosing to "duck his responsibility with what is effectively half a decision".

National Parks in the UK aim to conserve the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage of the area they cover, and promote their sustainable use.

Three exist in Wales, each administered by their own park authority that also oversees planning for its areas.

Davies made the decision as the park would have been in the Senedd constituency of Rural Resilience Minister Llyr Gruffydd, who had also publicly opposed the park.

The decision follows an exercise by Natural Resources Wales, which concluded that the area satisfied the test for establishing a park.