Carmarthenshire Council facing £45million budget cuts over next three years


Carmarthenshire Council is facing massive budget cuts of around £45million over the next three years.
The figure was revealed following the announcement of the Welsh Government’s provisional funding settlement.
Carmarthenshire is looking at a reduction in its funding settlement from Welsh Government of 3.3% which is less than recently anticipated, although still considerably more than was originally planned.
It was thought that the county was looking at savings of around £30million over the next three years, now it is likely to be £45million.
Bosses have warned that hundreds of jobs could go, and some services will be lost as the authority tries to balance its books.
Leader Cllr Kevin Madge said: “Although this is a better settlement than we recently anticipated, the situation overall is still very bad news for Welsh local authorities, including Carmarthenshire.
“There is no doubt it will have a grave effect on the services we deliver, on the people who work for us and on the county as a whole.
“We have been ahead of the game, and have already delivered millions and millions of pounds in efficiency savings over the last few years, which up until now has stood us in good stead.
“But we have nowhere left to turn, and now the cuts will go deep. Nothing will be protected, in some cases the level of our services will have to be reduced. In other cases the service will have to go completely.
“We appreciate the difficult position of the Welsh Government, these cuts have been imposed on them by Westminster, but this is the worst settlement we have ever had as a county council, and politicians of all colours will have to make some of the toughest decisions of our careers.”
A full consultation exercise will now be carried out to give everyone the chance to have their say on the proposed cuts.
A councillors’ seminar has already been held, and further consultation will take place with members, who will also be debating the issues at scrutiny committees.
Members of the public will be consulted during a series of roadshows which will be held across Carmarthenshire.
These are due to start mid-November and questionnaires will also be made available in communities and online at iLocal.carmarthenshire.gov.uk

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