A £335 million package to help businesses with their rates bills in 2025-26 was unveiled by the Welsh Government today (Dec 11), including continued support for retail, hospitality, and leisure businesses for the sixth consecutive year.

As the Draft Budget was published this afternoon, Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Mark Drakeford, highlighted Welsh Labour’s commitment to economic growth, job creation, and decarbonisation. Key funding allocations include £144 million for all-age apprenticeships and an extra £6.5 million for the Flexible Skills programme, focusing on sectors linked to green growth.

The Draft Budget prioritises record investments in flood prevention and coal tip safety. This includes an additional £25 million for 2025-26 from the UK Government, complementing the £65 million coal tip safety programme running from 2021 to 2025. The publication coincides with the introduction of a new Coal Tip Safety Bill.

Key highlights of the budget include:

• £88 million in capital funding for city and growth deals.
• £23 million to develop employment sites and property to create new jobs.
• £5.15 million to support Trydan Gwyrdd and local energy plans.

For the first time, Welsh Labour is leveraging collaboration with the UK Government to allocate over £3 billion in capital funding. Every department will see an increase in funding, enabling significant investments in infrastructure and services across Wales.

This marks a shift from the difficult budget decisions of previous years, with an additional £1.5 billion earmarked for public services, aiming to restore growth and resilience.

The funding reflects the First Minister’s priorities, focusing on job creation in sectors addressing climate change, restoring nature, and supporting families.

Specific allocations include:

• £3.7 million to address planning system delays.
• £5 million for Natural Resources Wales to expand land and marine consenting capacity.
• £4.5 million for Green Business Loans to assist SMEs with energy efficiency and decarbonisation projects.

First Minister Eluned Morgan said:
“Welsh businesses are the heartbeat of our economy, and this is a budget for a brighter future, supporting those businesses to thrive and survive.

“It is also an opportunity to build on our outstanding green and renewable energy sector, underpinning our unashamed support of new renewable energy projects to meet our electricity demands.”

Cabinet Secretary for Finance Mark Drakeford added: “This Draft Budget is for a brighter tomorrow. With two Labour governments working together, we can provide long-denied investment to public services, put Wales back on the path to growth, and start to reverse the damage inflicted over the last 14 years.

“It is a budget of hope and growth for Welsh businesses and the green sector. The First Minister’s priorities, those issues which matter most to the people of Wales, are reflected in this funding.”

THE WELSH GOVERNMENT has unveiled its Draft Budget for 2025-26, allocating £443.9m to address housing pressures and more than £100m in additional revenue and capital funding for education.

Supporting Housing and Education

Finance Cabinet Secretary Mark Drakeford announced key allocations, including £219.6m for homelessness support and prevention, £14.3m to assist children with Additional Learning Needs, and extra resources for literacy, numeracy, and the Education Maintenance Allowance.

The budget also commits £93.5m to maintain universal free school meals in primary schools, a 4.3% increase in the local government settlement to sustain essential services like schools and social care, and £57m in financial transactions capital to extend the Help to Buy Wales scheme for another 18 months.

Capital Investment and Social Housing

With more than £3bn in capital unlocked, the Welsh Government has prioritized investment across departments. Highlights include £81m in extra funding for the Social Housing Grant and Transitional Accommodation Capital Programmes to deliver more social housing and continued investment in the £2.3bn Sustainable Communities for Learning programme to refurbish and rebuild schools and colleges.

First Minister’s Vision

First Minister Eluned Morgan emphasized the focus on delivering for Welsh communities:
“This Draft Budget supports the issues important to you. It reflects what I’ve heard in our cities and rural communities: the need for better healthcare, housing, jobs, and opportunities. Today’s announcement ensures continued delivery of the services that matter most to the Welsh people.”

Reversing Austerity

Mark Drakeford underscored the transformative potential of the budget:
“This is a budget for a brighter tomorrow. By working in partnership with the UK Labour Government, we are undoing years of underfunding. This budget protects the most vulnerable in Wales and prioritizes investment in communities that need it most.”

The budget sets Wales on a renewed path to growth, ensuring public services and infrastructure can meet the needs of all citizens.

SPECSAVERS HAVERFORDWEST has achieved a gold award in the Greener Primary Care Wales Framework and Award Scheme, recognising its outstanding commitment to environmental sustainability and reducing its impact on the planet.

Launched in 2022 by the Primary Care Division of Public Health Wales, the framework supports GP practices, community pharmacies, primary care dental practices and optometry practices to adopt eco-friendly initiatives.

Specsavers Haverfordwest is among only a handful of optometry practices and Specsavers stores in Wales to achieve this award, having first joined the scheme in January 2024.

Over the past year, the practice has implemented a range of sustainability measures, from healthy lifestyle changes to carbon management, all aimed at contributing to the Welsh Government’s target of achieving net-zero carbon emissions.

Wayne Jones, retail director at Specsavers Haverfordwest, says: ‘We are delighted to be recognised for our commitment to sustainability. Climate change poses serious challenges to both individual and public health and we have a role to play in mitigating its impact.

‘Participating in the Greener Primary Care Wales Framework and Award Scheme reflects Specsavers’ dedication to reducing its carbon footprint and ensuring that its operations and services support a healthier future. We look forward to driving this forward at our new store.’

Specsavers Haverfordwest will relocate to a new premises in the Riverside Shopping Centre on 16 December. The new £1.2 million store will have 14 test rooms, including two audiology suites which will support the growing local demand for advanced eye and hearing care while helping to ease pressure on the NHS.

The store will be open seven days a week. To find out more information about Specsavers in Haverfordwest, request an appointment or browse the online store, visit www.specsavers.co.uk/stores/haverfordwest.

Additionally, to make eye health accessible to all, the store offers a Home Visits service for those unable to leave their homes unaccompanied due to disability or illness.