Swansea would gain £3.9m extra if Wales received fair funding
Figures obtained by Plaid Cymru show that Swansea Council would stand to gain at least £3.9m extra each year if only the UK Government were to change the way Wales’ funded.
Last June, an Independent Commission, chaired by economist Gerald Holtham, considered the way the Assembly Government is funded and found that Wales is losing out by £300m a year.
The Commission recommended that the controversial Barnett formula should be replaced with a new needs-based system which would take into account factors such as the age of the population and levels of poverty.
Plaid AM Dr. Dai Lloyd stated::
“This issue is not one for the political anoraks – it is of great importance and relevance to Swansea during these times. We see that Swansea Council, along with other Councils in Wales, is facing very difficult decisions due to tight budgetary situations.
“The way that Wales is funded from Westminster is a key driver in this. Were the Assembly to receive a fair share of funding from Westminster it would have more to spend on local services. The Labour and Tory parties in Wales have recognised that this can’t go on but their masters in London refuse to do anything about it. Wales needs fairer funding and a strong, independent voice in Westminster during these hard times. Only Plaid Cymru can provide that voice.”
“Were this extra £300m shared equally across all Welsh Assembly Departments, it would have resulted in an increase of over £85m extra for local Government in Wales this year.
“Split equally between 22 local authorities this would mean an increase of funding of £3.9m, but given that Swansea is one of the larger authorities it would expect to receive even greater funding.
“This extra funding would have been a welcome relief to those of us who would like to see more funding for education in Swansea, and would enable the council to continue funding facilities such as the Tennis Centre.”
