A LLANDUDNO councillor described the spending of £250,000 of taxpayers’ money on “counting the number of moths on the Great Orme” as “crazy”.
Speaking at a Conservative Party conference in Llangollen last week, Cllr Louise Emery raised the issue of a grant paid by Welsh Government to Conwy County Council.
The “Cryptic Creatures of the Creuddyn” is a two-year project focussing on invertebrates associated with limestone habitats on the Creuddyn peninsula.
Delivered by the Heritage Fund, on behalf of the Welsh Government, the project is funded by the Nature Networks Programme and involves working with schools and the community for the benefit of invertebrates.
Cllr Emery, though, believed Welsh Government money could be better allocated to councils at a time when many local authorities are struggling to make ends meet and cutting front-line services.
“We are seeing a lack of investment in roads, and it is priorities. The worst one I’ve heard of is £250,000 counting the number of moths on the Great Orme – crazy!” she said at the conference.
“So there is money. It is always about priorities. So we need to say as the Welsh Conservatives, who will be in power in 2027, that we need to focus on the absolute basics of what we do at local authorities: collect the bins, educate your children, and look after your vulnerable, and fix your highways, essentially.”
Speaking later, Cllr Emery elaborated on the comments made at the political conference, explaining it was Welsh Government who allocated the funds spent on the project.
“My point I was making at the Conservative conference was about priorities and that there is money available from Welsh Government but only for certain things, so whilst local authority budgets are really being squeezed, Welsh Government finds money for projects such as the Cryptic Creatures of the Creuddyn,” she said.
“On its own merit, in its own little world, I can see some benefit to that, but in the grand financial picture of what local authorities are facing, I find it incredulous that they can find money for a project like this, but we can’t find money for basic public amenities such as toilets or looking after our parks and gardens or highways.
“So it’s not that I’m against the project in itself, but it is a priority where you allocate money to. This is not Conwy revenue money. I was saying there is grant money available, which I think should be prioritised, supporting local authorities properly.”
A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “The Cryptic Creatures of the Creuddyn project was awarded £248,348 as part of the Nature Networks Fund in February 2024. It is a collaborative initiative led by Conwy County Borough Council in partnership with Natural Resources Wales and Butterfly Conservation.
“The project is carrying out surveys and protecting rare and at-risk invertebrate such as the micro-moth, measuring about 2cm across which has been found in abundance in its only known Welsh Habitat. This work will inform future habitat management and conservation strategies.”
Cllr Charlie McCoubrey, council leader said: “This is a grant-funded project. It’s important to note that grant funding is for specific projects and cannot be spent on other services. Whilst grant funding is available, we will continue to apply for it.”
