MS, Cabinet Secretary for
Housing and Local Government: I am today laying before the Senedd
the Local Government Finance Report (No.2) 2026-27 (Final
Settlement – Police and Crime Commissioners). This sets out the
Welsh Government's component of the Final Police Settlement for
police forces in Wales for 2026-27. Today, the Home Office
published the final Police Grant allocations for policing bodies
in England and Wales to ensure Police and Crime Commissioners can
set precepts by the 1st of March.
Policing policy is not devolved and funding for the four Welsh
police forces is delivered through a three-way arrangement
involving the Home Office, the Welsh Government and council tax.
For 2026-27 the total core support for police forces in Wales
will be £512.34million.
A common needs-based formula, operated by the Home Office, is
used to distribute funding across English and Welsh police
forces, and the approach to setting and distributing the Welsh
Government's component of police funding provision is based on a
principle of ensuring consistency and fairness across England and
Wales.
As in previous years, the Home Office has overlaid its
needs-based formula with a floor mechanism. This ensures all
police forces in England and Wales can expect to receive an
increase in core funding of 4.022% for 2026-27. I encourage the
four Police and Crime Commissioners in Wales to consult with
their local communities in considering the level of local funding
for 2026-2027. They will need to consider carefully the balance
between impacts from increases in police precepts and on services
to their communities.
Following consultation, the funding for the Final Police
Settlement remains as set out in my statement on the 18th of
December on the Provisional Police Settlement. I propose to set
the Welsh Government's contribution to police funding for 2026-27
at £113.47 million. The floor funding is provided by the Home
Office. The figures are summarised in Tables 1 to 4 of this
Statement.
I acknowledge the challenging financial context within which
policing partners are operating, as well as the continuing
cost‑of‑living pressures faced by many households. The UK
Government has confirmed that, in England, increases to police
precepts are restricted to £15 without the requirement for a
referendum. Although this limit does not apply in Wales, Welsh
Ministers retain the power to impose a cap on increases should
that be considered necessary. The Welsh Government will continue
to engage constructively with Welsh PCCs and forces to ensure the
most effective deployment of our shared resources and to support
the delivery of our collective ambitions for communities across
Wales.
The Local Government Finance Report (No.2) 2026-27 is scheduled
for debate in the Senedd on the 3 March 2026.
This information is also published on the Welsh Government's
website at:
Final Police
Settlement 2026-27
