Clear mandate for change in Welsh money matters

‘Greater clarity and a focus on fairness for all must be applied to Welsh Budgets’ – that’s the overarching message following a national survey.

The Wales Women’s Budget Group, set by Chwarae Teg this year, works to ensure that there’s fair and gender equal tax and spending in Wales. It undertook the research to look at the level of interest people have in the nation’s budget, as well as their understanding of how it works. Results have shown key areas which need addressing and will be used to inform the WWBG’s future work.

In the survey, 98% of women said they were interested in the Welsh Government Budget, though 57% of them didn’t feel confident in their understanding of it, with the figure rising to 75% amongst BAME women.

This lack of comprehension has highlighted the need for a WWBG, and its role is very much aligned with actions that respondents are calling for. Namely these include a WWBG that:

• makes sure budgets impact women fairly and represent the needs and views of women
• demands a focus on areas where women have been traditionally disadvantaged – such as maternity leave, loss of earnings after having children, health and social care, childcare
• looks at data to make sure that women are not excluded in budget decisions
• works to ensure the needs of marginalised groups are considered

Rebecca Rickard, Project Coordinator, Wales Women’s Budget Group, said:

“Although the lack of awareness when it comes to the Welsh Budget is disappointing, it’s not surprising and so gives us a strong mandate for the work we have planned at the Wales Women’s Budget Group.

“Respondents commented that it was often hard to connect with budget information and see how it related to their everyday lives. They would like to see more debate around how budgets are spent and more attention paid to a diverse range of voices. These are areas we are already working to improve and deliver on.”

“The importance of gender budgeting is well recognised around the world, with the other nations of the UK already having their own Women’s Budget Groups.  A fairer focus doesn’t just help to make women better off – it benefits all, with research by Chwarae Teg showing that a labour market, in which women were able to play a fair and equal part, could potentially add £13.6 billion to the Welsh economy.”