Opposition councillors are still waiting for financial information so that they can give an alternative budget at next week’s full Powys County Council meeting.
On Tuesday this week, the cabinet backed a 9.5 per cent hike in the budget as well as a myriad of cuts to make up a deficit of nearly £12 million to produce a balanced budget.
Finance portfolio holder Cllr Aled Davies’ budget will be discussed and voted on at the full council meeting on Thursday, February 21, before being ratified on March 7.
Welsh Liberal Democrat-Green Group leader Cllr James Gibson-Watt is hoping he will be able to present an alternative budget.
Cllr James Gibson-Watt said: “We have still not received budgetary information that was requested many weeks ago, preventing us from launching our alternative budget.
“However, I can pledge that councillors will have the option to support a budget that seeks to protect public services while limiting the burden on taxpayers.
“Powys County Council will spend over £255 million in 2019-2020. If the council can afford to refurbish County Hall and its canteen, it should be able to maintain services such as libraries from that huge sum of money.
“Instead, they risk pressing ahead with proposals that will be deeply damaging to local communities.”
Plaid Cymru group leader, Cllr Elwyn Vaughan, has said that he won’t be putting his own budget together but will be listening to all sides of the argument.
Cllr Vaughan said: “I will be very interested to find out what James Gibson-Watt has to say. And then I will put my suggestions forward into the mix.
“We have a Conservative Westminster Government with an austerity agenda. A Welsh Government that seems to forget large swathes of Wales and a local authority which historically has lacked vision and strategic thinking thus cumulating in the current disaster.”
Labour group leader, Cllr Mathew Dorrance, has set out a number of test to judge the budget on:
They are:
1. Reform public services while repairing the council’s reputation and maximising the disposal of capital assets to drive transformational change;
2. Reversing cuts to front-line education;
3. Promoting regeneration, jobs and training to help tackle poverty and create community wealth;
4. Deliver quality services for our vulnerable citizens that keep children safe and provide dignity and security for older residents and people with disabilities;
5. Work with partners to develop new local housing opportunities and improve community safety;
6. Support active citizens in greener, more prosperous and better connected communities.
Cllr Dorrance said: “Our budget tests are a carefully thought out set of priorities that we believe the council must meet before we support any proposals they bring forward.
“For too long the council has failed to plan and residents are paying the price of that failure.”
A spokesman for Powys County Council, said: “Other political groups can bring forward alternatives and if requested they will be supported by officers who will provide full information."
