9.5 per cent rise can't happen again says Powys Lib Dem leader

The county council finally passed their 9.5 per cent council tax rise yesterday, alongside £11 million worth of cuts.

It was passed after a previous vote had failed, and party leaders thrashed out a new deal.

Lib Dem leader James Gibson-Watt said the authority should have sold off some assets to fund certain projects.

He said the authority can't come back and vote on a rise like this again in 2020.

He said: "We should not forget how we got here, because next year we can’t come back and say to the people of Powys.

“Sorry we’ll have to put the Council Tax again by a record amount, and by the way we’re withdrawing the funding for services.

“The message has to go out that the services have to live within the money they receive.”

Savings dropped from the budget included £200,000 from libraries, £50,000 that was due to be cut from sport development and £60,000 from school meals.

Also £500,000 that was due to go into council reserves, will now be worked back into the budget.

Finance portfolio holder, councillor Aled Davies, Consevative for Llanrahedr-ym-Mochnant, said he hopes they aren't bottom of the government funding pile next year.

He added: "We are in the hands of Welsh Government to a certain extent, as we don’t know what their level of funding for local authorities will be.

“We hope that we won’t be at the bottom of the pile next year.”

The council tax vote meant that the bill for a B and D house will go up by £9.41 and does not include community/town council or Dyfed-Powys Police precepts that are set independently and added on to the bill.

But county councillor David Selby, Liberal Democrat for Newtown Central was angered and said the rise leaves his constituents in danger.

He said: “My ward is not typical of Powys, it’s an urban area with mainly social housing, below average income and greater demands on certain services.

“Now what are we planning for them?

“We have above inflation rent rises, a 9.5 per cent council tax rise which will be a lot more when we take into account all the precepts and cuts to vital services.

“It does not take a genius to work out that the costs are in danger of leaving people, needing the very services that are being cut.”