Welsh Government publishes 2025-26 budget

The Final Budget 2025-2026 has been published in the Senedd, with an extra £100 million for public services.

Social care, childcare and local councils are set to benefit from more than £100 million in extra funding.

The new agreement includes an extra £30 million for childcare, which will ensure funding for the Flying Start programme to deliver childcare to two-year-olds across Wales. The hourly rate will also be increased to £6.40 an hour to further support childcare providers.

There is £30 million more for social care to target delayed hospital discharges and provide more care and support in local communities to prevent people being admitted to hospital unnecessarily.

Furthermore, a guaranteed 3.8% funding floor has been promised for all local authorities, costing £8.24 million. This will increase funding available to 9 local authorities – Monmouthshire, Powys, Gwynedd, Vale of Glamorgan, Flintshire, Pembrokeshire, Ynys Mon Ceredigion and Conwy.

£5 million has been allocated to improve playgrounds and play facilities for children, alongside and extra £5 million to support leisure centres to be more energy efficient.

There is also £5 million extra to tackle water pollution in rivers and seas and an extra 10 million for rural investment schemes.

In transport, £15 million has been allocated to fund a pilot scheme for young people aged 21 and under to pay only £1 for a single bus fare in Wales and there is £500,000 in capital funding to improve toilets on main roads. Extra support has been announced to create a £120 million local authority road and pavement repair scheme.

Cabinet Secretary for Finance Mark Drakeford said: "This agreement demonstrates what can be achieved when the Welsh Government and Members of the Senedd work together constructively on areas where we have common ground. The additional investment will make a real difference to communities across Wales, particularly in rural areas.

"Taken together with the extra £1.5 billion announced in our Draft Budget, this is a positive package of additional funding for every part of Wales, which will have a significant impact on our public services."

Jane Dodds MS, Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, said: "This agreement is a positive step in making Wales the fairer and more prosperous country I want it to be.

"I’m delighted we have secured funds needed to deliver my party’s key priorities of improving social care, increasing quality childcare, tackling water pollution, improving roads and public transport and protecting vital council run services.

"I’m really pleased the Welsh Government is taking this step to offer universal free childcare to families with children aged two to four across Wales. This is important to tackle child poverty and to help parents get in to work to help with the cost-of-living crisis."