Ceredigion County Council will see a funding cut of 0.3 per cent from the Welsh Government in 2019/2020, while Powys County Council will see an even larger funding cut of one per cent.

The announcement by the Welsh Labour Government has been heavily criticised after it emerged that the six councils that will receive a funding increase are all based in south Wales, with Swansea Council receiving the same level of funding.

Of the 15 Welsh councils that will receive a funding cut, Ceredigion is facing the smallest cut at 0.3 per cent, with Pembrokeshire receiving a 0.4 per cent cut and Carmarthenshire a 0.5 per cent cut.

Powys is one of five that will receive a one per cent funding cut, the highest level of cut across the country.

Despite criticism that the funding settlement was made on political grounds, Local Government Secretary Alun Davies said an estimated cut of one per cent across local government, which would have worked out as a £43m equivalent cut, had been reduced.

He said: “We have worked hard, across government, to offer local government the best settlement possible in this ninth year of austerity.

“We have made further allocations to the local government settlement to mitigate most of the reduction local government had been expecting.­

“As a result, the £43m cut has been reduced to less than £13m, including floor funding, which equates to a reduction of 0.3 per cent on a like-for-like basis compared to the current year."

See this week’s south papers for the full story, available in shops and as a digital edition on Wednesday