Over recent weeks, discussion has taken place on whether councils should fund for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations. On Monday, Ruthin town council had been left divided after it was decided that the Denbighshire market town would go ahead with its plans to contribute money for the royal event.
This comes as the UK is set to celebrate 70 years of the Queen's reign, which will take place between June 2-5 this year. There are talks that street parties, concerts and other events will take place in honour of the landmark.
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We asked the 22 county councils in Wales how much was budgeted for the Queen's Jubilee county. Of the 10 responses that we did receive from various councils, nine of them confirmed that there were no budgets for the event, while only one confirmed that money was provided for events in the county.
In west Wales, Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion counties confirmed that there were no allocated budgets for the celebrations. A spokesperson for Carmarthenshire County Council said: "There is no central budget and nothing has been specifically identified for this celebration".
A spokesperson for Neath Port Talbot council confirmed that they did not have a budget for the Platinum Jubilee, however they "encouraged" people to take part. They said: "We have promoted and encouraged involvement in the Queen’s Green Canopy initiative and the notion of street parties. We have encouraged organisations to reflect the Jubilee celebrations in events that were already in the schedule. Otherwise, we will be lighting three LED beacons and will consider other low level activities over the period."
There was no "specific budgets" allocated by Powys County Council, but any expenditure to support local celebrations will be met through "existing budgets", according to a spokesperson for the council. They had also taken action to support celebrations, such as free parking and road closures.
In north Wales, the counties of Conwy, Flintshire, Gwynedd and the Isle of Anglesey confirmed there would be no spending on the event, however the latter county confirmed that they would be working alongside stakeholders, such as local town councils.
A spokesperson for Isle of Anglesey County Council responded with: "Anglesey County Council does not have a budget allocated for the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations. We are working in partnership with key stakeholders (e.g. Sport Wales and local Town Councils) to welcome the Queens Jubilee Baton to the Island as part of the Commonwealth Games celebrations. The Council is also providing local residents / stakeholders with advice regarding events they may wish to organise in their local communities."
During the Jubilee celebration, various events will take place in Cardiff, including garden parties at local venues, the Platinum Jubilee Concert and a giant screen to showcase the celebrations in Bute Park. However, a spokesperson for Cardiff City and County Council confirmed that there was no budget for the event.
They said: "We don't have a specific budget set aside for this although some officer time will be taken up enabling street parties, delivering the light up of the beacon and on the picnic. The screens are organised by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). The concert is promoter-led and is the responsibility of the promoter."
Vale of Glamorgan was the only county that responded to our question and confirmed that a budget had been allocated for the royal event. According to a spokesperson for the county council in south Wales, they had allocated £10,000 for the jubilee. This money would be used to cover infrastructure for street party road closures that will be taking place across the Vale.
