THE WELSH GOVERNMENT has today (June 17) published its First Supplementary Budget for the 2025-26 financial year.

The updated budget reflects adjustments made since the Final Budget was agreed in February and includes several allocations from the Welsh Government’s reserves. It also incorporates changes to baseline funding following UK Government fiscal decisions earlier this year.

According to the written statement issued by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Welsh Language, Mark Drakeford MS, the revised budget is designed to keep public spending aligned with shifting economic conditions and priorities.

The Supplementary Budget outlines how money will be reallocated or drawn down to address emerging pressures or policy changes. It forms part of the normal financial planning process and gives the Senedd an opportunity to scrutinise government decisions taken since the Final Budget.

A debate on the Supplementary Budget has been scheduled for Tuesday, July 8, in the Senedd.

The Welsh Government said the changes ensure financial flexibility while remaining within overall spending limits.

Further details, including the full budget breakdown, are available on the Welsh Government’s website.

Photo caption:
Finance lead: Mark Drakeford MS will present the Supplementary Budget to the Senedd on July 8 (Pic: Herald)

Listening exercise complete – local feedback now under review
PEMBROKESHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL has begun a comprehensive review of 20mph speed limits across the county, following a wave of public concern and a major listening exercise.

The review follows widespread concern over the Welsh Government’s blanket 20mph policy, introduced in September 2023. Residents, businesses and community leaders across Pembrokeshire raised concerns that the one-size-fits-all approach fails to account for the county’s rural road network and varying local conditions.

Councillor Rhys Sinnett, Cabinet Member for Residents’ Services, confirmed that the council is now reviewing the feedback on a settlement-by-settlement basis and will contact residents directly in areas where speed limit changes are under consideration.

“Where a speed limit review has been proposed, we will engage directly with local residents before moving to wider consultation and any formal changes,” said Cllr Sinnett.

While the initial public response to the 20mph policy has been mixed, data from police shows a 28% drop in casualties on 20mph and 30mph roads across Wales since the change. In Pembrokeshire, recorded casualties fell from 125 to 89 over the same period.

Although the council is no longer seeking new suggestions, the review process will continue throughout the current financial year. Formal changes to speed limits will be implemented where appropriate via the statutory Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) process.

Meanwhile, the council has also reported a number of 20mph signs being vandalised or removed across the county, with the cost of replacement now exceeding £4,000. Despite this, the reduced limits remain fully enforceable.

The Herald understands that the next steps will include direct communication with residents in affected settlements, followed by formal consultation where required.

Conservatives demand answers after ministers fail to provide figures to UK-wide audit

A FAILURE by Welsh Government ministers to submit key data on child sexual exploitation to a UK-wide audit has sparked accusations of a cover-up by a senior Welsh Conservative.

South Wales Central MS and former Senedd opposition leader Andrew RT Davies said the refusal or inability of Welsh Labour ministers to hand over figures to the National Audit on Group-Based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse was “deeply concerning”.

The audit, led by Baroness Louise Casey, sought information from both the UK Department of Health and Social Care and the Welsh Government on how many cases of group-based child sexual abuse were encountered in health services. While data was received from Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs) in England, no equivalent information was provided by the Welsh Government.

Mr Davies said: “This will inevitably raise suspicions of a cover-up. It is deeply concerning to learn this data was not provided – and if it is not being collected, we must ask why.

“There are serious questions for Senedd ministers to answer. Transparency and cooperation are essential when tackling such grave crimes.”

The Casey audit was commissioned to investigate systemic responses to group-based child sexual abuse, often referred to in the media as “rape gang” exploitation, following high-profile failures in towns such as Rotherham, Rochdale and Telford.

In the report, Baroness Casey noted: “Data was sought from both the Department of Health and Social Care and the Government of Wales on how many cases of child sexual abuse or exploitation they see in health services. Only the Department of Health and Social Care provided data, via the Sexual Assault Referral Centres.”

The Welsh Government has not yet publicly responded to the findings, and it remains unclear whether the requested data was not collected, was withheld, or could not be provided in the format required by the audit.

Supporters of the Welsh Government may argue that data sharing across devolved services can be complex, particularly when systems for health and policing differ between nations. However, critics say the lack of cooperation in such a high-profile national review sends the wrong message about accountability.

The Herald has approached the Welsh Government for comment.

The audit’s wider findings highlight inconsistencies in data sharing and safeguarding oversight across the UK, and call for more joined-up approaches to ensure victims of exploitation do not fall through the cracks.