The leader of Monmouthshire County Council welcomed a slight increase in his council’s budget after the Welsh Government’s final settlement was announced.

But Councillor Peter Fox also took the opportunity to lament the ongoing reductions in spending he and councillors are forced to deal with, adding that the difficult financial climate only got ‘harder’.

The settlement meant Monmouthshire will get a £260,000 bump compared to a provisional settlement which announced a £469,000 cut back in October.

Announcing that Welsh authorities would receive a share of an additional £20m, Alun Davies AM, cabinet secretary for local government and public services, said the additional cash meant no local authority would see its budget reduced by more than 0.5 per cent.

Councillor Peter Fox, said, “Any increase in funding is to be welcomed and I am pleased to see an additional £260,000 coming forward when compared to the provisional settlement announced for the council in October.

“I am less pleased that in the meantime the pay bill for all councils has increased by more than two per cent for next year and that we continue to suffer the joint biggest year on year reduction in funding of any council in Wales.

“The financial challenge for the council and the citizens of Monmouthshire continues to get bigger and harder.

“Wales Government has missed yet another opportunity to give vital local public services a chance by continuing to pour money into the health service.”

Welsh Government’s final settlement also includes a further £7 million to support the increase to the capital limit in charging for residential care to £40,000, from April 2018.