Sustainable Powys meeting fails to impress Builth Wells councillors

Councillor Alan Waller and Liam Hopkins went along to the Powys County Council meeting to hear the latest on the future plans for the county.

Future Powys County Council services will be centred on four towns – Newtown, Welshpool, Llandrindod Wells and Brecon - as the authority outlines a radical shake up of provision.

The only guaranteed services to market towns like Builth Wells will include bus stops/stations, primary schools, secondary schools, streetlights, waste and recycling, car parks. So the town is at risk of losing its leisure centre and library with residents having to travel to Llandrindod Wells to access council services.

The council says the strategy is being developed to ensure it can deliver stronger, fairer and greener services going forward, whilst remaining within the available budget.

The Council is currently forecasting more than a £20million gap for the 2024/25 financial year. This is expected to increase to £44million or more over the next four years.

Councillor Waller said he felt the county council has already decided what it is going to do and communities will have little option.

He said he also got the feeling that the county council will try and get its hands on any community benefits funds that may come from wind farm developments including the Bute Energy plan.

Councillor Mark Hammond said; “My main concern is that if Powys County Council is looking to get their hands on the community benefit funds they will spread it thinly and that the communities suffering the most along the 60 mile pylon and turbine route will will lose out to Powys’ pet projects.”

Councillor Hopkins suggested that once the town council has met with Builth Wells County Councillor Jeremy Pugh on January 7 to come up with a unified response to any county council proposals to cut services in the town, they should then ask other town and community councils to have a meeting to discuss the issues.

Councillor Pugh said; “There have been no meetings with county councillors to see if they have any better ideas. They are going to push it through whether we want it or not. I don’t think the response from Builth should just be my opinion, it would be good to meet and form a consensus for the town.”

Councillor Hammond added: “It is key that we keep watching now because it will need to be sorted by the county council’s budget meeting in February and it is a down time now and people may take their eyes off the ball.

“It is wrong, the officers are dealing with the strategy and they are not being challenged by local councillors because the information is being kept from them. Is the public going to come first or political dogma?”