Welsh Government: Budget Overnight Trail

• The Welsh Government's Draft Budget 2026-27, which will be published later today, will set out spending plans worth more than £27 billion for public services.
• Today is the first stage of the Draft Budget when the high-level allocations for each department will be published.
• The next stage of the Draft Budget, which features more detailed departmental spending plans, will be published on 3 November.
• The Senedd will vote on the Final Budget in January 2026.

Notes to editors

Timeline for the Draft Budget:

• 14 October 2025               Draft Budget published (stage 1). Outlines high-level allocations by Main Expenditure Group (MEG) for each Welsh Government department.

• 3 November 2025             Publication of Detailed Draft Budget (stage 2), setting out spending plans at budget expenditure lines (Budget Expenditure Line (BEL) details for each Welsh Government department.
• 26 November 2025            UK Autumn Budget
• Late November 2025         Draft local government settlement to be published (date TBC)

• 20 January 2026               Final Budget published. 

Final local government settlement published

• 27 January 2026               Final Budget debate and vote

Vote on tax motions
Vote on local government settlement

In the Welsh Government's budget:

MEG stands for Main Expenditure Group. This is how the Welsh Government categorises its spending allocations across major portfolios like Health and Social Care, Education, Transport, and more. Each MEG includes both resource spending (everyday operational costs), and capital spending (long-term investments such as infrastructure).

BEL stands for Budget Expenditure Line. These provide more detail about how money is allocated at a detailed level.