Fears have been raised that Powys County Council is over-reliant on specific Welsh Government grants that help fund vital services.

At a meeting of Powys Council’s Economy, Residents and Communities Scrutiny Committee on Tuesday, January 27, councillors probed the 2026/2027 budget proposals in several areas, including Highways, Transport and Recycling (HTR).

This year, the department received £36.83 million from the council’s main budget. This figure is expected to rise to £39.63 million in 2026/2027 from an overall council budget of £390.5 million.

The department has proposed a range of savings and cuts to contribute to the £12.3 million the council needs to find next year to balance the books.

Among these is a proposed saving of £695,000 from the “use of a WG (Welsh Government) Regional Transport Grant.” This grant would be used by the department instead of council revenue.

Cllr Adrian Jones (Conservative – Berriew and Castle Caereinion) asked: “Is there a risk that if these grants are not forthcoming, the HTR budget will be reduced? There’s quite a level of grant funding each year.”

Cllr Gary Mitchell (Plaid Cymru – Llanbrynmair) pointed out that the £695,000 had been flagged as an “amber” risk. He said: “That gives me the impression that there’s risk around that; it’s not definite. If we were comfortable and knew it was coming in, it would be green.” He asked when the department expects to know the details of the grant confirmation.

Head of Highways John Forsey said: “Until we get the grant letter, there’s never any certainty that we’re going to get a grant, but this income is factored in. Hopefully we’ll have more clarity before the end of February.”

He explained that next year the department expects to receive “off the top of my head” £11 million in grant funding. Mr Forsey added: “There is a high reliance on grant income; it’s always a risk. We know there are changes in how grants are being administered in Welsh Government and how that will flow to local authorities on a more regional basis. We’re fairly confident that we’ll get the allocations we have suggested in the budget.”

He said the council is expecting a “fairly significant transport grant increase” from the Welsh Government, worth £12.8 million next year. However, this funding will cover the whole of Mid Wales and will be administered by the Corporate Joint Committee (CJC) with Ceredigion Council.

Towards the end of the meeting, Chairwoman Cllr Angela Davies (Liberal Democrat – Rhayader) asked colleagues to compile comments to be added to the budget papers ahead of the full council meeting at the end of February, when the budget will be voted on.

Cllr Jones added: “I am concerned about the level of grant funding for highways, and if that is lost, can it be reinstated through the normal (budget) process?” He stressed that grant funding for highways “benefits” the whole council and, if lost, HTR should not “take all of the sting”; it should be shared across the council.

Cllr Pete Lewington (Conservative – Newtown West) said the committee should highlight which proposals are at most risk of “non-delivery” and ask whether any alternatives “already exist.”