The Minister for Business and Budget, Jane Hutt, met Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, in Westminster on Tuesday.
The Minister said:
“I congratulate Danny Alexander on his appointment and I am looking forward to what I am sure will be a constructive meeting and longer term relationship.
“The Welsh Assembly Government fully recognises the challenges of reducing the deficit and will be responsible partners in achieving this. However, we have consistently held the firm view that this should not be done at the expense of our economic recovery and employment within Wales. As such, we need clarity on the savings expected, the split between capital and revenue, and our need to have full End Year Flexibility (EYF) to manage these savings effectively.
“We have also already made savings in most of the areas highlighted by the UK Government in the announcement on 24 May, so making further savings this year without impacting on front line services is particularly challenging for us. And we are of course concerned about the Olympics negative consequential. I will be raising these issues in my meeting with the Chief Secretary today.
“I welcome the opportunity to share with the Chief Secretary some examples from our Efficiency and Innovation Board, which I chair, as I note that the Chancellor has announced a similar group at UK level and it is holding its inaugural meeting later today.
“I will also be discussing the steps that the UK Government can take to ensure fairer funding within Wales for the longer-term, to recognise the evidence provided by the First Holtham Commission report that Wales is underfunded by £300m annually, and the need to put in place a floor to prevent this underfunding increasing.”
