Deputy leader slams Welsh and UK governments for underfunding authority

Richard Evans, Local democracy reporter.

Ratepayers in a north Wales county are facing a 6.5% council tax rise as council chiefs blame the UK and Welsh governments for the “awful financial situation”. 

Conwy County Council’s cabinet backed the proposed increase of 6.09% increase for council services and an additional 0.41% for the North Wales Fire & Rescue Authority, as part of a a draft revenue budget for 2026/27. 

The recommendations will now go before full council next week. 

The report sets out how a balanced budget can be achieved. 

Introducing the report, cabinet member for finance and strategic planning, Cllr Chris Cater, said 71.6% of the council’s funding came from Welsh Government, with the authority receiving a 4.1% increase in its annual local government settlement – the joint lowest percentage rise in Wales. 

Despite receiving nearly £11 million in additional funding from Welsh Government, the council had faced a revised remaining shortfall of £5.632m, a meeting at the council’s Coed Pella HQ was told. 

But cabinet supported £2.236m of savings from services, with school budgets ringfenced and funded on a standstill, no-reduction basis. 

It was also proposed that £100,000 is used from reserves, despite the council’s head of finance advising that reserve levels should, if anything, be increased to provide resilience. 

Leader Cllr Julie Fallon said it was important that people knew the council had worked hard to reduce council tax as much as possible but that it had to remain “safe”. 

She added: “We need the funding nationally to increase. I would say to all political parties we have an election coming up at the Senedd in a couple of months’ time, and they need to write into their manifestos that they fund local authorities appropriately so that we can address increased demand so we can make sure our schools are funded appropriately.” 

Cllr Fallon said while the council had ringfenced funding this year, pressures were increasing. 

Cllr Mike Priestley, deputy leader and cabinet member for the environment, roads, and facilities, seconded the proposal but described Conwy as in “an awful financial situation”, blaming the UK and Welsh governments. 

He said: “I became a councillor to work for my community. I still am a councillor that will work tirelessly for my community. But when I have governments that tell me this is what you are getting when we know it is far, far short of what we need to balance our books, it is very, very difficult. 

“And then I have to go to my residents and say, ‘I’m supporting the council tax’ because otherwise the only other thing is we are going to have to stop delivering some services. 

“Every service we provide is precious to somebody in our authority.” 

Cllr Priestley said he was pleased not to have introduced a double-digit council tax rise. 

“We are not like the National Health Service, where you can go and overspend and not be accountable. We legally every year have to balance our books – from a multi-million-pound project in Colwyn Bay to selling a Mars Bar in Venue Cymru. We have to balance our books,” he said. 

“So, I will second this. It is difficult. I will be able to talk to my residents and say why I have been in this position to balance the books legally for Conwy.” 

He added: “We’ve been in this process probably for 14 years. When I first got elected, we had money, and we could do lovely projects, but those lovely projects we’ve had to strip back as part of the budget process, and it is really difficult.” 

The vote in favour of the budget was unanimous. If approved by full council next week, the increase will take effect from April 2026.