Council tax will rise - but by less than was feared

CARMARTHENSHIRE

- RICHARD YOULE

Council has approved a budget which was looking "very grim" just a couple of months ago, according to a cabinet member.Council tax payers will pay 4.9% more in 2026-27 than they do currently but it's less than the 6.5% increase that the Plaid Cymru-Independent-led council had initially forecast.

Cllr Alun Lenny, Plaid cabinet member for finance, told a meeting of full council: "While this remains higher than we'd like, it reflects the ongoing pressures faced by councils across Wales, including rising demand for services coupled with persistent financial challenges."

Most of the council's funding for its revenue, or day-to-day, budget comes from the Welsh Government and Carmarthenshire will end up getting a 4.1% rise rather than the 2.3% increase earmarked a few weeks ago.

Cllr Lenny said this was due to Plaid abstaining at a key budget vote in the Senedd on condition that an extra £300m should be provided to the Welsh NHS and the country's 22 local authorities.

"When we prepared our draft budget towards the end of last year the position looked very grim," he said, referring to the initial modelling.