, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
And it's the balance then between progressive and non-progressive taxation and relief and we see that in council tax; we see that in business rates, potentially, where we probably need a better way of progressively working through these things. But we'd…
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
I think that would be useful, if you could, because it seems from colleagues here that if it's a one-size-fits-all type of system, which it seems to be, it's how sophisticated can we get with the levers that we've got—or is it just that we're stuck with this…
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
I think Joyce wanted to come in.
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Thank you. That's all from me. I'll hand over to Mike.
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
One hundred and fifty million, was it? Did you say £150 million or £100 million?
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Thank you. Peter, did you want to come in?
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
I'll bring Peter in in a second now. Two questions. The £150 million that you're intending to borrow, obviously interest rates have shot up recently, so how are you factoring the cost of borrowing into the budget? And—it might be a question for Andrew, I'm…
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Thank you. So, if we move on to the fiscal levers that we do hold here—tax borrowing and forecasting: what approaches are being proposed in this budget to maximise the funding available to the Welsh Government for 2023-24, in terms of changes to taxation…
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Thanks. Okay, thank you very much. Just whilst we're talking about the UK Government, in terms of funding and consequentials allocated in the autumn statement, has there been any improvement in transparency?
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Eighty-seven million pounds left there, just in case.
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Okay, thank you. So, there's just over £90-odd million? It depends if my sums are correct. No, 80—
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Peter.
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Okay. Joyce, and then Peter.
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
And the Wales reserve is currently at what level?
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
With regard to reserves, you said all the reserves are allocated now, or—
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Right. Okay. Fair enough. So, let's move on to funding available to the Welsh Government. So, I'd like to look at the draft budget and transparency of UK Government funding. I know this has been a hot topic for us in the past. What level of reserves are being…
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
And is that your intention, if you need to?
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Right, okay. Yes, that's fine. So, in your outturn report for 2021, it reported His Majesty's Treasury had denied you the flexibility to offset your capital overspend with some of the revenue underspend. Is the Welsh Government still able to switch from…
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
And is that closer to the eight or closer to the three?
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
So, just to remind us: what's the average inflation that you've taken across this budget?
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Okay. Moving on to the impact of inflation, and in the news in the last couple of days, I think, inflation is dropping a little bit. I'm just wondering if you could give us an idea of where you see inflation over the shorter period, anyway, and then what…
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
And with making those decisions, is it individual Ministers who have been deciding those issues, deciding those solutions, and then coming back to you, or have you been giving them directions to say, 'Well, you should be extending this term, because this work…
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Okay. Thanks, Peter. You talked about maybe pausing or deprioritising some of the funding. What real-terms impact is that going to have on that house building or on the communities for learning? Is that pushing end dates backwards? What's the thought process…
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
I think Peter wants to come in.
, Finance Committee
Scrutiny of the Welsh Government Draft Budget 2023-24: Evidence session 1
Mike.
