What does the UK budget mean for Wales?

Local TV

We’ll be taking a look at what the recent budget announcement from UK chancellor Rachel Reeves means for Wales. She says that Wales will receive an extra 1.7 billion pounds in the budget, and claims it’s the biggest real terms increase since the start of devolution, so we’ll be exploring the possible impact.

Transcript

00:00UK budgets can be a confusing thing for people in Wales. There are announcements on NHS funding,

00:07education and a number of areas, but a lot of the time they don't matter to Wales.

00:14Some do, some don't, and it can be confusing which ones are relevant or not. One thing

00:18for sure that does matter though, is the money specifically set aside for Wales to spend

00:23within Wales by the Welsh Government, and Rachel Reeves claims that the latest sum

00:27of cash is the highest ever real-terms increase to funding in Wales.

00:32It's been something politicians in the Senate have been asking for for years, and it's finally

00:37come – a genuine influx of cash that Wales desperately needs.

00:42The total figure is roughly £1.7bn, according to Reeves, and while that clearly is a substantial

00:49amount of money in the grand scheme of national budgets, it's easy to see how quickly that

00:53money will be chopped up and distributed.

00:57One of the top priorities for Welsh Government will be the NHS. Waiting lists are at an

01:01all-time high and records keep getting broken, so fixing that issue will be a key target

01:06for First Minister Eluned Morgan and her Health Minister Jeremy Miles.

01:13Another issue that looks to be in a worrying state for people across Wales is council funding.

01:18There is roughly half a billion pounds worth of funding gaps dotted around various local

01:22authorities in Wales, so many will be hoping that money will help in that area.

01:29Specific money designated for securing safety at coal tips was also mentioned in the budget

01:34to the tune of £25 million, which will be a welcome sight for communities facing the

01:39dangers of the coal mining industry.

01:44Opposition parties have said that the funding increase isn't transformative and will not

01:48be the catalyst for change that Wales needs. However the £1.7bn is spent, people around

01:54Wales will be hoping that some problems at least can be fixed.

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