Leighton Andrews, Minister for Public Services
This was published under the 2011 to 2016 administration of the Welsh Government
Today I am publishing details of the Final Revenue and Capital Settlements for Local Government funding in 2015-16. They include allocations of core funding for individual Local Authorities.
In preparing the Final Settlement, I have given careful consideration to the responses I received to the consultation on the Provisional Settlement. I am confident it provides a robust basis for Local Authority financial planning for the coming financial year.
For next year, I am setting Local Government revenue funding at £4.125 billion. This is slightly higher than I announced in the Provisional Settlement.
The total represents a decrease of 3.4% (£145 million) compared with 2014-15, after adjusting for transfers.
As I announced in the Provisional Settlement, to limit the change for any individual authority, I will again apply a damping mechanism so that no Authority will see a reduction of more than 4.5% in its core provision compared to 2014-15. Whilst the unhypothecated Settlement is the largest single source of funding available to authorities, it is not the only one. Authorities must take account of all the income streams available to them in setting their budgets and making decisions about service provision for 2015-16.
Alongside the Settlement, I am publishing the latest information on Welsh Government grant schemes planned for 2015-16. This provides Local Authorities with a comprehensive picture of the funding from the Welsh Government for 2015-16, allowing them to budget effectively.
Table 1 sets out the final distribution of Aggregate External Finance between the 22 Authorities for 2015-16.
In the absence of information regarding the UK Government’s spending plans, I am unable to provide indications beyond 2015-16.
The motion for the National Assembly for Wales to approve the Local Government Finance Report for 2015-16 is scheduled for debate on 13 January 2015.