Councillors in Gwynedd have backed the 2021/22 budget, which includes a 3.7% council tax hike.

The plans, which will result in the average “Band D” property paying an extra £52.92 a year or £1.02 a week, were passed by 38 votes to 13 during Thursday’s full council meeting.

Despite the draft settlement proposing that the authority will receive an extra 3.4% from central government in 2021/22 and covering the cost of inflation,  over £30m of cuts over the past decade was said to have taken its toll on the ability to make many further cuts in service.

The report, proposed by finance chief Ioan Thomas, noted that the increase was needed to  protect essential services, adding it would be “impractical” and “more challenging” to identify and achieve savings across departments.

But after Anglesey Council this week proposed a cut in its proposed tax rise from 3.75% to 2.75% after more cash was promised by the Welsh Government, Cllr Anne Lloyd Jones sought answers on why Gwynedd Council could not propose a similar easing in residents’ tax bills.

Cllr Dilwyn Lloyd added that local people are “on their knees” and struggling to pay council tax, referring specifically to those earning just over the threshold to be eligible for most benefits.

“3.7% is still a lot if you don’t have it,” he said.

“I know that officers have worked hard on this but the people of Gwynedd are struggling and we’re rising the tax every year. We need to help them.”

But Cllr Gareth Thomas says that not increasing the tax by 3.7% would result in the need to make cuts in key services, referring specifically to business support at a vital time.

According to Gwynedd Council, while the increased funding and firm financial management meant they could avoid “knee-jerk cuts to services,” increased demand means it would not be enough alone to meet the cost of delivering services.

Speaking after the meeting, Cllr Ioan Thomas said: “The past financial year has seen Gwynedd Council overcoming unprecedented challenges to continue to deliver the services that local people need.

“Unfortunately, the financial pressures associated with Covid-19 are likely to be felt for the foreseeable future and certainly for the financial year ahead.

“Given this, we welcome the fact that the Welsh Government has decided to reimburse a significant proportion of the additional costs the Council has and will continue to incur due to the pandemic.

“The effects of the pandemic has meant that it has been very difficult to deliver some of our planned savings over the past 12 months as, during this time, protecting the health and lives of the people of Gwynedd has rightly been the Council’s priority.

 “As a result, the Council has decided to increase Council Tax this year by 3.7% to bridge the remaining £3.5 million gap.

“This increase will allow us to continue to deliver the services that are most important to the people of Gwynedd over the coming 12 months.”