How much are Taxpayers funding the 8 day Eisteddfod in Rhondda Cynon Taf?
The taxpayer is footing an additional bill of £500,000 for the Rhondda Cynon Taf Eisteddfod and the Eisteddfod Urdd, courtesy of the Welsh Government. This begs the question: is this additional expenditure simply adding to the already substantial sum taxpayers contribute annually to the Eisteddfod? In 2023 alone, taxpayers shelled out £1 million to purportedly support various activities at the Eisteddfod.
Rhondda Cynon Taf finds itself in dire financial straits, as asserted by the council’s leader, Andrew Morgan, who perennially laments the lack of funds, a sentiment reflected in the annual rise of council tax.
Delving into the specifics, one must wonder about the extent of taxpayer investment from RCT Council into this Eisteddfod extravaganza, especially considering the long-term planning involved. Could this be why taxpayers found themselves footing a staggering £2 million bill for a footbridge leading to the park? And more recently, an events area, costing a hefty £300,000 of taxpayers’ hard-earned money, purportedly deemed necessary for the park.
But that’s not the end of it. Consider the Riverside Plaza saga, involving the demolition of the M&S store and other structures, totalling an eye-watering project cost of £1,833,923. The subsequent plan to replace the bingo hall with a hotel collapsed, leaving taxpayers to shoulder the burden of the £1.5-2 million spent on bus bays.
Despite the hotel venture falling through, the council is still in the business of investing taxpayer funds in town development, even going so far as to borrow under the Welsh Government’s Transforming Towns program to facilitate private sector endeavours.
With the Eisteddfod descending upon RCT, taxpayers are bracing themselves for a multi-million-pound bill, albeit with promises of lasting improvements for Pontypridd. Notably, the Eisteddfod also receives funding from the Arts Council of Wales, yet transparency regarding the allocation and utilization of these considerable sums remains elusive.
The perplexing reality raises legitimate questions about priorities. Why funnel vast sums into an 8-day event while essential services like healthcare face prolonged waiting times and staff shortages? Moreover, the profligate spending extends to the ballooning costs and delays of projects like the Metro and millions spent on Cardiff Airport millions more for additional politicians in the bay and blanket 20 MPH. It’s a confounding state of affairs, where logic seems to be in short supply within the Welsh Parliament, as taxpayers’ hard-earned money continues to be squandered.
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Don’t you think those on low incomes have suffered enough already without sending them to the Eisteddfod?
So there’s no money to continue free breakfast clubs in RCT & free school transport is also being cut back. But you can find a spare half a million for the eisteddfod????
What a waste of bloody money….meanwhile my old man is having to fork out £15k for my mum to get a hip operation. Spend the money where it’s needed and stop wasting it on frivolity
Hopefully, I’ll get my NHS appointment through soon. As it’s only been 16 months, I’ve probably got a while longer to wait
These guys have no shame. Should be keeping this quiet as once again you waste tax payers hard earned money. Let’s not worry about hospital waiting lists cancer outcomes. As long as we can do little virtue signalling projects. Absolute clowns
People are paying privately for health treatment as the NHS has no cash, but we can afford to drop half a million quid on the poxy eisteddfod.
