Commenting on the release of the provisional local government settlement, Welsh Conservative Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Local Government, Janet Finch-Saunders AM, said:

“While severe cuts to the local government budget have been somewhat halted, this remains a difficult settlement for Welsh councils.

“The free town centre parking pilot is welcome – a scheme we have been advocating since 2012 – but there is still much more that can be done to revive our high streets.

“Supported by Plaid Cymru, this settlement will require some challenging decisions that will hit hardworking families in the pocket.

“Previous cuts have devastated local government budgets and as such this is a testing time for local authorities across Wales.

“Since the onset of devolution, council tax has risen by a staggering 178 per cent under the Labour Party and there appears to be little or no respite on the cards.

“Communities across the country now face an anxious wait to see if another council tax increase is on the way as a result of this latest settlement and the Welsh Government’s ongoing failure to implement any cap or freeze.”

Once again, the rural authority of Powys faces one of the biggest cuts to its budget, despite the Liberal Democrat Assembly Member for Brecon and Radnorshire, Kirsty Williams, having a seat at the cabinet table.

Finch-Saunders has said communities across Mid Wales will feel ‘aggrieved and let down’ by the failure of the Liberal Democrat Member to stand up for the region, adding:

“The Welsh Government’s relationship with rural Wales - and particularly that with Powys - has never been lower but with a voice from Mid Wales at the cabinet table communities will have expected better.

“Sadly, the Liberal Democrat Member for Brecon and Radnorshire has stood back as her ministerial colleagues drive through another damaging set of cuts for Powys and local people will rightly feel aggrieved.”