Tuesday 13 October 2009

Wrexham tops WAG budget settlement


This went out to the local press in Wrexham:

Wrexham will receive the highest increase in Assembly Government funding for Welsh councils in the latest round of funding announcements.

The 3.1% increase for 2010-11 has been welcomed by Plaid Cymru's North Wales AM Janet Ryder. She said: "Wrexham doesn't qualify for the EU Convergence Fund and has been badly hit by job losses in the past year. Therefore it's good to hear that Welsh Government funding for the council in the coming financial year is the highest in Wales."

She added: "The picture across North Wales is a mixed one - some councils are receiving below the 2.1% average increase while others, like Denbighshire and Wrexham, are above average. Because of UK government cuts in budgets, there's no doubt that many councils will struggle to maintain services.

"What's important to note is that the Welsh Government has seen a less-than-expected block grant from London because of UK government cuts but is ensuring that cuts are minimised for local councils. This is where the frontline services are and these are the services we need to protect and safeguard. That's why the Welsh Government has ensured that councils overall are getting the same funding increase as the Assembly itself."

 Wrexham Council will receive £162 million from the Welsh Government, an increase of £7 million, but the Plaid AM is concerned that the long-term funding settlement for Welsh councils could look bleak. 

Janet Ryder launched a passionate attack on the way funding is allocated to Wales. She said: "The Plaid-Labour government in the Assembly has had to use money held in reserve to help at this vital time. That is because London governments have consistently underfunded Wales because of the flawed Barnett Formula. This formula means that Labour in London is holding back money that should come to Wales. The independent Commission chaired by Gerald Holtham identified this spending gap and said that, until the funding formula was reviewed, no further cuts should be imposed on Welsh funding. This has been ignored and that ultimately means that frontline services such as health, education and social services will feel the pinch.

 "Plaid has campaigned for many years for a fair funding formula to ensure that Wales gets the money it needs. Unless that is addressed, next year's settlement is likely to be followed by more severe cuts."

The full settlement is detailed below:


WELSH LOCAL GOVERNMENT SETTLEMENT 2010-11




















Provisional





















Table 1a: Increase in AEF







?000s













Local Authority

2009-10 
Final AEF?

2010-11 Provisional AEF?

% increase

Rank













ISLE OF ANGLESEY

93,595

94,531

1.00%

21


GWYNEDD

168,441

170,197

1.04%

20


CONWY

144,405

146,042

1.13%

19


DENBIGHSHIRE

134,698

137,920

2.39%

6


FLINTSHIRE

183,618

186,989

1.84%

12


WREXHAM

157,409

162,294

3.10%

1


POWYS

179,219

181,012

1.00%

22


CEREDIGION

98,978

101,042

2.09%

9


PEMBROKESHIRE

159,957

162,181

1.39%

17


CARMARTHENSHIRE

247,315

251,678

1.76%

13


SWANSEA

296,521

302,028

1.86%

11


NEATH PORT TALBOT

195,419

198,861

1.76%

14


BRIDGEND

176,092

180,723

2.63%

4


THE VALE OF GLAMORGAN

148,613

152,161

2.39%

7


RHONDDA CYNON TAFF

340,172

348,653

2.49%

5


MERTHYR TYDFIL

85,654

87,343

1.97%

10


CAERPHILLY

248,483

254,083

2.25%

8


BLAENAU GWENT

107,958

109,593

1.52%

16


TORFAEN

129,087

131,169

1.61%

15


MONMOUTHSHIRE

97,790

98,904

1.14%

18


NEWPORT

191,062

196,974

3.09%

2


CARDIFF

382,753

394,093

2.96%

3













Wales

3,967,239

4,048,471

2.05%















Footnote :1. 2010-11 figures include the transfers in and out of the settlement, 2009-10 figures are therefore adjusted to include the 2009-10 value  to allow comparison at local authority level. This results in a slight difference (0.02%) when compared with the overall  increase in funding before the inclusion of transfers.






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