Responding to the announcement that the Welsh Government will now fund 100% of the council tax benefit, Peter Black, Welsh Liberal Democrat Shadow Local Government and Finance Minister, said:
“This is very much welcome news, however the Welsh Labour Government could have avoided the uncertainty and mess they created just before Christmas if they had acted earlier. Assembly Members were astounded that the Welsh Labour Government left regulations to the very last minute and refused to put up this extra money while the Scottish Government and many councils across England had managed put in place replacement council tax benefit programmes in good time. This is pure Welsh Labour Government incompetence.
“It is important that we protect, as much as we can, people on benefits and low incomes from the difficult economic situation we are going through. This announcement is welcome news for councils as it will mean that they will no longer face the dilemma of chasing small amounts of money with all the extra expense that would have entailed.”
