Council sets budget for 2022/23
THE Vale of Glamorgan Council has set its budget for the next financial year, which includes a lower than anticipated Council tax increase of 2.9 per cent.
Proposals were agreed at a meeting of Full Council on Monday evening following a full and frank discussion and debate.
It was thought a greater Council Tax increase might have been necessary to meet the significant cost pressures facing the organisation, but a larger than anticipated settlement from Welsh Government has helped the situation.
However, there remain substantial cost pressures and required savings next year of £500,000 along with around £700,000 to fund the Real Living Wage for care staff, including private sector care workers.
In order to balance the budget, the Council still needed to use around £1million from its reserves and the Authority is still facing a challenging financial landscape following a decade of austerity and the significant impact of Covid-19.
Welsh Government funding will rise by 10.51 per cent for the next financial year, but early indications are that increases for 2023/24 and 2024/25 will be at a lower level of 3.5 per cent and 2.4 per cent respectively.
That being the case, the Council needed to ensure that the budget for future years was protected and so plans to use £500,000 from reserves to fund next year’s budget were agreed, with a possibility of using further reserves the year after.
Despite using these reserves, the level of financial shortfall in future years is expected to grow, meaning the Council must continue cutting costs.
The Council has set itself a savings target of £500,000 over the next 12 months, with departments constantly looking at ways in which they can operate more efficiently.
Cllr Neil Moore, Leader of the Vale of Glamorgan Council, said: “Despite the fact the Council received a better-than-expected settlement from Welsh Government, we still find ourselves in an extremely challenging financial position.
“Though welcome, this money does not address a 10-year legacy of consistent Local Government funding cuts by Central Government.
“That coupled with the financial burden of the coronavirus has left the Council in a very difficult situation.
“We have kept Council Tax as low as possible, opting for a 2.9 per cent increase, which means the Council Tax for a Band D property here remains well below the average for Wales.
“However, that still means other savings will need to be made. Departments will have to be run more efficiently in order to balance the books.”
“The coronavirus pandemic has impacted the Council in the form of both lost income and additional expenditure and although that expenditure may continue, funding will no longer be available from Welsh Government to cope with those costs beyond this financial year. Therefore, we have ensured within the budget that this potential expenditure will still be available from our own resources.
“A number of other factors are also expected to negatively affect the Council’s financial position, such as increasing energy prices and changes to National Insurance payments. This is alongside the fact that the Vale has an ageing population and growing number of children with complex and Additional Learning Needs, who require greater service provision.
“We have also ensured that there will continue to be funding for road repairs, council house building and improvements to our waste management service. I sincerely believe that this budget allows the Council to move forward and continue to provide the services that our citizens require and ensues continuity of service provision for the next financial year.”