, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
Okay, thank you for that. Just finally from me, and I'll come to John Griffiths after this: some of the discussions that you've been having with UK Government—well, I hope that you've been having them with the UK Government, and I believe that you have—are on…
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
Yes, it's a very complicated issue, because every local authority—especially local authorities—are at different stages of managing their budgets, and you give them the autonomy to do that, but some might have made decisions and, in hindsight, they might have…
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
Taking that forward for public services in Wales—some are done in-house, and they are public service employees in that definition—and then you have third sector and other bodies providing front-line services in our communities that are contracted out—that…
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
I think you’ve described it as fundamentally unfair.
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
Talking a bit about bundles of money potentially going to local government in particular and possibly a wider context rather than just local government, but in terms of the national insurance contributions, it’s come up nearly with every single stakeholder…
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
A letter we've been copied into, to Welsh Government from the future generations commissioner, urges it to protect and ring-fence funding for prevention in future Welsh Government budgets. So, have you had sight of that letter? And how do you go about doing…
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
Some of the work that the OBR have been doing, and others, is looking at the effects of climate change—I know the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales obviously looks at that longer term, and we've got the Act to do that. In this way that you're looking…
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
Thank you. I'm just trying to think of the people on the bus that you were talking about earlier—maybe not necessarily those, but our stakeholders, local government, some of the people that we've had in front of us giving evidence. What will they see from…
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
Thank you for that. The UK Government are doing a spending review. You've committed to doing a Welsh spending review. Could you talk about timescales with that and how that will be fed through, and how those results will be described and maybe the process…
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
We seem to be having strange years every year.
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
Because it's closer to apples and apples then when you're—
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
I briefly looked at that last night and it seemed to answer some of that concern. It's more about tracking year on year. And where there are changes in-year, I know it's difficult, but it's trying to get a sense of where the money's flowing, to be able to…
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
Thank you for that. Moving on, then, to something that we talked a little bit about when you were with us last, your inclusion of a revised baseline for 2024-25. It's caused some confusion for some stakeholders when comparing revenue and capital spending year…
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
I don't want us to be in the same position as we were a few years ago when money went back.
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
And that wouldn't impact then on your ability to use those within the timescales that they need.
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
Is that in the region of hundreds of millions or tens of millions?
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
With Barnett consequentials—and we've seen late consequentials come in in a number of years—are you anticipating any more between now and the financial year end?
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
High on the priority list.
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
What's the reason behind them not publishing? Do you have a sense, from discussions you've had with Treasury?
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
And we've been through quite a few different iterations of that, and reasons for the exceptional process. I think some of the work that I did, and the committee did, with your predecessor in getting to some consensus on some of that, I think we just need that…
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
Because we've gone, effectively, in an exceptions process for six or seven years, rather than—. So, it's not an exception anymore.
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
—and explore the issues caused by the timings of fiscal events to start off with, including budget planning and scrutiny and some of those aspects. You know, it’s a long-standing subject that we as a committee—and I know that it impacts on you as a Government…
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
We're very thankful to have you here for this session, and we have received a lot of evidence ahead of time. And of course, we had the session just before Christmas with you as well when the budget was announced. I just want to look first this morning—
, Finance Committee
Welsh Government Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session 8
So, we’ll move on to the third item this morning, which is our substantive item for this morning, which is evidence session 8 on the Welsh Government draft budget for 2025-26. We have witnesses here with us, and the Cabinet Secretary. I just wondered if you’d…
, Finance Committee
Papers to note
We'll move on to item 2, which is papers to note. I hope to be able to note the papers that we have. Does everyone agree with that? Yes, thank you very much.
