Councils in Wales face budget pressures of £559m next year, equivalent to a 26 per cent council tax rise or the loss of nearly 14,000 jobs, a committee heard.
Mark Pritchard, leader of Wrexham council, welcomed an improved provisional settlement from the Welsh Government, with an average 3.8 per cent increase announced in December.
But he said the extra money is not enough, warning of cuts to services, redundancies and higher council tax. “We’ve got no other option here,” he stressed.
Giving evidence to the Senedd’s local government committee on January 8, Cllr Pritchard added: “Is it a relief? Yes, it’s better, it’s an improvement but it’s not enough.
“I think I have to say this: is the Welsh Government setting us up to fail because they know what the pressures are … all we want … is to be funded appropriately.”
Cllr Pritchard raised the example of adult social care and children’s services in Wrexham, with an extra £25m put in by the independent-led council which he said was struggling.
He warned of compulsory redundancies, saying thousands of jobs could be lost across Wales and the threat of bankruptcy has not gone away.
He said: “The way we’re going … we’re on the edge and unless the money comes there will be serious consequences.”
On the estimated £109m cost to Welsh councils of rising employer national insurance contributions, Cllr Pritchard called for clarity ahead of the proposed June date.
He told the committee: “If the money’s going to come, they should give it us. We’re setting out budgets before it – it’s a nonsense.”
Mary Ann Brocklesby, the Labour leader of Monmouthshire council, said councils have faced deep structural challenges after 14 years of austerity.
Pointing to pressures on social care and education, she said: “The resources we have available to deal with the increasing pressures are not there.”
Cllr Brocklesby warned funding for additional learning needs support and school attendance has already been “cut to the bone”.
She told the committee without the proposed 3.8 per cent average increase, councils could have faced catastrophic consequences with large-scale redundancies and services slashed.