The Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Local Government and Assembly Member for North Wales, Mark Isherwood, has hit out at the Welsh Government’s Local Government Settlement, which initially gave all six North Wales Councils a cut of at least 0.5% - and three a 1% cut.
Speaking in today’s Debate on the Local Government Settlement 2019-20, Mr Isherwood, who previously described the settlement as “a kick in the teeth for North, Mid and West Wales”, again referred to the clear North/South divide and to the fact that Labour councils receiving the highest settlement in this budget are sitting on over £800m in usable reserves.
Speaking in the Chamber he said:
“The Welsh Local Government Association described the initial Local Government Settlement as “a deeply disappointing outcome for Councils across Wales with the gravest implications for services”.
“In a letter signed by representatives from each political group, the WLGA Conservative Group Leader, Councillor Peter Fox, stated “With £370m new monies arriving from Westminster, an imaginative approach to funding preventative services to keep people out of hospitals was needed. Instead, the Welsh Government has given the NHS a 7% increase and cut council budgets” - and that “this budget is full of tired and outdated thinking”. He also warned that “this was becoming a false economy”.
“With a clear North/South divide, all six North Wales Councils would have received a cut of at least 0.5% - and three a 1% cut.
“Responding to the subsequent Welsh Government announcement that – thanks to extra funding from the UK Chancellor - the funding floor had been raised from -1% to - 0.5% and that an additional £13 million would take the Welsh average to a flat cash settlement, the WLGA Leader stated “Despite this welcome announcement, there is no doubt that this remains a particularly challenging financial settlement”.
“With the exception of Denbighshire, which now receives a flat settlement, all North Wales Councils receive a cut, with the largest cuts in Flintshire, Conwy, and Anglesey, alongside Monmouthshire and Powys, at 0.3%.
“So, those Councils receiving the lowest per person funding under the Welsh Government’s flawed funding formula are again hit hardest - and Council Tax payers, who already pay a higher proportion of their income on Council Tax than in any other UK Nation, will have to bear the burden.”
He added: “Although the Welsh Government has hailed this budget as having a “focus on prevention”, their delivery has failed to spend better on prevention and early intervention in order to improve lives and save money.
“The Local Government Funding Formula, which has not been independently reviewed for 17 years, is overly bureaucratic, complex and out dated.
“In November, Labour-led Flintshire County Council launched its #BackTheAsk campaign in full Council and received unanimous cross party support to “take the fight down to the Local Government Department in Cardiff to get a fair share of national funds”.
“In a joint letter to the Welsh Government, their Leader and Chef Executive stated “the disparity in formula-based funding inevitably creates a wide variation in the financial risks in Councils in Wales. Flintshire is at the extreme end”.
“Its Leader subsequently stated ‘the Council is seeking a recognition of how the formula impacts on the Council’s lowfunded position where compared to the majority of Councils in Wales’.
“In a letter yesterday, he stated that ‘Flintshire is a low funded Council at 19th out of the 22 Councils, despite being sixth largest in population terms’, pointed out that the Welsh Government has received an extra £33 million following the recent Chancellor’s budget - and asked that this be distributed to Councils.”
