Chairman concerned over council’s Finance Panel axe

MyWelshpool understands that members of Powys County Council's Finance Panel were not aware it was to be abolished following the announcement from county hall this week.

The Panel’s Chair, Cllr Aled Davies, said he has “deep frustration and concern” following the Executive’s decision to abolish the Panel - whose responsibilities, he said, are clearly defined in Powys County Council’s own Constitution and which plays a critical role in safeguarding the integrity of the Council’s financial planning.

Cllr Davies said that the Finance Panel’s Terms of Reference set out a comprehensive and robust scrutiny function. The Panel is responsible for examining the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS), testing the evidence base behind the annual budget, reviewing draft budget proposals and impact assessments, scrutinising financial risks, and providing independent, evidence‑based recommendations to Cabinet. It is the only body within Powys County Council tasked with strategic financial scrutiny.

Despite this, the Cabinet has chosen to remove the Panel from the constitution.

Councillor Aled Davies said the decision demonstrates poor judgment and reflects a worrying shift away from transparency and accountability.

He said: “The Finance Panel exists to protect residents by ensuring Powys County Council’s financial decisions are based on evidence, realism, and proper scrutiny. Cabinet and senior officers have continually undermined the Panel already by withholding key financial information from the Panel. It weakens oversight, reduces transparency, and undermines public confidence in how the Council manages taxpayers’ money.”

He believes that the Panel’s functions are not duplicated elsewhere in the Council’s committee structure, despite Powys stating this week that the council’s wider governance arrangements have developed with financial scrutiny now undertaken through its Scrutiny Committees, while the Governance and Audit Committee provides independent assurance over financial affairs, governance, risk and control.

In a report, the council also states that the cross-party Budget Advisory Group, established in 2025, also gives councillors “earlier involvement in developing budget proposals and the Medium-Term Financial Strategy”.

But Cllr Davies said: “This decision leaves Powys without any dedicated mechanism for strategic financial scrutiny. No other committee covers these responsibilities.

“The Cabinet is effectively removing independent challenge at the very moment when financial pressures on local services are at their highest. Residents deserve better than opaque decision‑making and weakened democratic oversight.”

He said that the Budget Advisory Group (BAG) is not part of the Council’s constitution, is controlled by Cabinet, and has no formal scrutiny powers.

He added that it cannot require information, cannot issue recommendations to Full Council, and is not politically balanced. Crucially, he said, the independent PPA report recommending abolition makes no reference to BAG at all, raising further questions about the robustness of the Cabinet’s decision.

Cllr Davies concluded: “Replacing a formal, politically balanced scrutiny panel with an informal, Cabinet‑controlled group is not good governance. It is not transparent, it is not accountable, and it is not in the public interest. Powys residents deserve a council that welcomes scrutiny, not one that dismantles it.”

Cllr Davies pointed out that these were his own views and not made on behalf of the panel. But MyWelshpool understands that the Finance Panel views were not sought before Powys produced their report, which was not published until after last Finance Panel meeting on September 17, meaning the Panel was not aware of the plans to abolish.

If supported by the Democratic Services Committee, the recommendation will be referred to Full Council for a final decision on October 8. The council’s statutory scrutiny arrangements and Governance and Audit Committee would remain in place.