Welsh budget set to be approved after Lib Dem deal

The Welsh government’s spending plans for the next year are expected to be given the go-ahead in the Senedd on Tuesday.

Its £26bn budget for the NHS, education and other public services is set to pass a crucial vote after Labour ministers won the support of Liberal Democrat Jane Dodds last month.

Government politicians need the help of one opposition MS – Dodds was won over after ministers promised a ban on greyhound racing and £1 bus fares for under-21s.

The Welsh Conservatives and Plaid Cymru are expected to oppose the package, which cover the next financial year.

Labour’s First Minister Eluned Morgan said the budget was a “real opportunity” to protect the NHS.

The Tories said it would not “fix Wales”, while Plaid accused Labour of failing to meet the challenges Wales faces.

Welsh Labour had been searching for a deal after the Plaid Cymru co-operation pact came to an end last summer.

If the budget is not agreed, the Welsh government’s funds – which mostly come from the Treasury – are automatically cut, with potentially £4.15bn over the course of a financial year at stake.

Decisions taken by UK Labour Chancellor Rachel Reeves means there is £1.5bn more in the Welsh budget for 2024-25, according to the Welsh government.

Plans include £600m more for the Welsh NHS, which ministers hope will tackle high waiting times.

But there are concerns public bodies will have to use the extra cash to fund a rise in the National Insurance paid by employers.

While there are promises of extra support for the public sector from the Treasury, it is not clear to what organisations it will extend to, or how much will be provided.

Welsh government ministers made an additional £100m worth of commitments to secure their deal with Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Jane Dodds.

Dodds, who is her party’s only MS and represents Mid and West Wales, was promised extra money for childcare, social care and councils.

The deal includes a £15m pilot scheme where anyone aged 16 to 21 will be able to travel anywhere in Wales on a bus for £1.

Labour holds exactly half the seats in the 60-member Welsh Parliament.

Ministers need the help of one opposition member to get business passed.

Dodds is expected to abstain.

The Welsh Conservatives said the budget “must be voted out, with Labour turfed out of office as soon as possible”.

The party’s shadow cabinet secretary for finance, Sam Rowlands, said: “Labour’s budget will not fix Wales, it will not address the people’s priorities, with woeful outcomes like excessive waiting lists and low educational standards speaking for themselves.”

Plaid Cymru’s finance spokesperson Heledd Fychan said her party could not support the budget, which she said failed to meet the challenge facing Wales.

She added: “We’re still denied the £4bn owed to us from HS2. There’s no fair funding deal to help our struggling public services.”

Labour First Minister Eluned Morgan said: “This budget is a real opportunity to protect our most valued public service for the future.

“With an extra £600m for health and social care on the table, will Plaid Cymru and the Welsh Conservatives vote against investing in our NHS?”

A Wales spokesman for Reform UK, which is hoping to win its first MSs at the next election, called for the budget to be rejected, saying it “did nothing to fix our struggling economy, failing public services, or the cost-of-living crisis”.