James Evans MS questions Powys Council's spending priorities in the Senedd
James Evans has asked at the Senedd what the Welsh Government is doing to protect local authorities from funding cuts.
The Brecon and Radnorshire MS says Powys County Council is putting up council tax and cutting services while paying more of its managers salaries of over £70,000.
Video from Senedd.tv
The Brecon and Radnorshire MS says Powys County Council is putting up council tax and cutting services while paying more of its managers salaries of over £70,000.
Video from Senedd.tv
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00What is the Welsh Government doing to protect local authorities from funding cuts?
00:08As a Government, we have protected front-line public services as far as possible.
00:13Local authorities have a settlement of £5.72 billion this year, an increase of 3.3% on
00:21a like-for-like basis, compared to 2023-24.
00:29The Liberal Democrats that are running Powys County Council this year put council tax
00:33up by 7.5% and are forecasting putting it up next year by 5%.
00:39This has all come to light at a time when the numbers of senior managers in Powys County
00:42Council over 70,000 a year has doubled.
00:46While they've doubled that number, they've decided to cut community cardboard services,
00:50take away leisure services in towns, and also revert some of our roads back to chip-ins
00:54all to save money.
00:56Government Secretary, what can you do to ensure that the Liberal Democrats in Powys
01:00County Council spend the money more wisely and protect front-line services from funding
01:06cuts?
01:07Because if something isn't done to protect Powys County Council from the Liberal Democrats,
01:11all we're going to have is senior managers and no front-line staff to deliver the services
01:15that we all need.
01:16Diolch, James, I see what you're trying to do there, but thank you for that.
01:26Thank you for the question.
01:28The core funding, as you know, is unhypothecated, it's for local authorities to determine the
01:33allocation of funding for its services.
01:36Local authorities have prioritised social care and education for many years, and this
01:42has, you know, inevitably meant that other services have borne greater pressure for savings
01:47and efficiencies.
01:50I look forward to visiting Powys County Borough Council shortly, and hopefully see them soon,
01:58but I look forward to working with them, as I will with other local authorities within
02:07Wales.
02:09Carolyn Thomas.
02:10Following over a decade of authority...