Wrexham Council Facing Budget Reduction As Provisional Funding is Announced

Provisional budgets for local authorities across Wales shows that Wrexham has received a 0.5% reduction in its budget for the next financial year.

Secretary for Finance and Local Government Mark Drakeford AM today announced a total of £4.107 billion of funding for local authorities in 2017-18.

Local government will see an increase in its funding for 2017-18 of £3.8 million compared to 2016-17. This is the first increase in the settlement for local government since 2013-14.

Announcing the provisional settlement, Mark Drakeford said: “The aim of this provisional settlement is to give local authorities the stability to manage the difficult decisions that lie ahead.

“We know that councils are delivering their services against a backdrop of austerity and this settlement provides a platform from which to plan for harder choices which will lie ahead.

“The changes we are implementing this year are based on the advice of an expert group comprised of local authorities and independent specialists.

“The package also includes additional funding to implement a minus 0.5% funding floor which limits the impact on councils that would have seen the biggest reductions in their core funding.”

He added: “This is a stable settlement in challenging times and will allow local government to set sustainable budgets despite constraints on public finances.”

However while some authorities across Wales have seen a provisional increase in their budget Wrexham has received a 0.5% reduction.

Leader of Wrexham Council Mark Pritchard says the reduction means the authority will need to make around £5m of cuts.

Cllr Pritchard said: “I am disappointed that the Welsh Government has not prioritised more resources on essential Local Government services.

“Wrexham has the 19th lowest change to its funding and also comes 19th in its funding per head of population. Such a low level of revenue funding is unreasonable and clearly the funding formula requires a radical overhaul. In addition, an opportunity has been missed to provide the Council with increased general capital funding.

“The Council will continue to work hard to reduce the impact of these savings on the people of Wrexham County Borough and will continue to prioritise the most vulnerable.”

He added: “I will be responding to this Welsh Government provisional settlement during the formal consultation period which ends on 30 November 2016.”

Speaking after this afternoon’s announcement, Wrexham AM Lesley Griffiths said: “Whilst Wrexham Council has received a slight cut in funding, I believe many would accept the Welsh Government is aiming to provide stability in uncertain times.

“The situation is far from ideal but continued cuts from the Conservative UK Government, coupled with the Brexit strategy and impact remaining unclear, unfortunately mean difficult decisions for both the Welsh Government and local authorities to undertake.”

“It is also worth highlighting what local authorities are facing in England. Over the border, councils are tackling central government cuts of almost 7% from 2016 to 2020, which is in addition to the overall 30% reduction between 2010 and 2015.

She added: “With various competing pressures and in spite of the challenging times, overall this remains one of the best outcomes local government has received. As the funding formula for calculating the settlements is agreed by Welsh Local Government Association representatives – not the Welsh Government – reasonable councillors will accept the figures are challenging but fair.

“From a local point of view, it will enable Wrexham Council to focus on delivering improved public services for Wrexham residents.

“The Welsh Government has always done its best to mitigate against UK Government cuts and it will continue to do its utmost to protect the people of Wales from Tory austerity.”