Welsh government offers extra additional learning needs money in bid for Labour budget deal

Wales' Plaid Cymru government is offering extra cash for children with additional learning needs (ALN) in an attempt to get a deal with the Labour party in Cardiff Bay, BBC Wales has been told.

Plaid, which is the biggest party but has less than half the seats in the Senedd, needs extra votes to agree its mid-year spending plans next Tuesday.

It is not known how much money is on the table, but a senior Labour source says the initial offer is not enough.

Plaid Cymru published its supplementary budget last month, with an extra £40m to try to bring down NHS waiting lists, £55m for the flagship childcare expansion and £40m for school repairs.

At the time, Finance Minister Elin Jones outlined plans to allocate an extra £294m to fund her party's policies.

A total of £247m in day-to-day funding has been left unallocated, but Plaid Cymru sources say they are mindful of looming pressures later in 2026 and into the new year, especially in the NHS.

Discussions about a deal have been taking place between Labour and Plaid, and BBC Wales has been told that Plaid has presented a set of proposals, thought to include extra money for ALN.

Labour and other opposition parties have been pressing ministers to allocate more funding for councils to deal with ALN pressures.

A separate Labour source said that "nothing was off the table" in terms of whether Labour would eventually support Plaid's plans.

The Welsh government has received extra money as a consequence of money spent by the UK government to pay off the debts of English councils built up through supporting young people with special educational needs and disabilities.

A supplementary budget allows the government to make in-year changes to its annual budget plans.

This year is different because the annual budget was set when Labour was in charge in Cardiff Bay. The supplementary budget was published by the Plaid Cymru-led administration after the party won May's election.

It is seen as a first indication of how Plaid will prioritise spending and a first test of whether it is able to strike deals with other parties.

Labour has previously suggested that the new Welsh government was taking its support for granted.

Last week the Senedd voted in favour of more money being spent on ALN, although the vote was not legally binding on the government.

If the supplementary budget fails to pass, then the Welsh government would stick to the annual spending plans agreed earlier this year.

The orignal budget was passed after Labour struck a deal with the then smaller party - Plaid.

If the plans are voted down on Tuesday it would be an embarrassment for the Welsh government and would lead to a political row.

Plaid would be likely to accuse Labour of voting against more money for childcare, the NHS and free school meals.

Labour would likely repeat its demand that more of the Welsh government's extra cash should go to ALN and that it has councils and teachers' unions on its side.

Ministers have the option to bring a supplementary budget back to the Senedd in a different form in the autumn.