PEMBROKESHIRE County Council is spending more on local goods and services.

Latest figures reveal that 53.68% of the Council’s procurement business was spent in Pembrokeshire - the highest percentage since recording started.

The figure marks a 13% rise in local spending since 2005/6 and 3% more than in 2010/11 when Welsh Government figures revealed that the Council had the highest proportion of local procurement spend of any local authority in Wales. It also had the highest proportion of Welsh spend of any public sector body in Wales.

Now the County Council is to put together a special team of officers to look at ways to maximise the local impact of its spending.

“We see Council spending as a tool for local regeneration,” said Councillor David Pugh, Cabinet Member for the Economy.

“In these challenging times it’s vital that as a Council we do as much as we can to boost business in the county and one way of doing this is to increase the opportunities for local suppliers to win our business.

“Not only is local spending good for the Pembrokeshire economy but it also has a multiplier effect because local suppliers in turn re-spend a far greater proportion of their contracts with local businesses.”

Services and goods supplied by local businesses to the County Council are varied and can include school transport, highways maintenance and home care for the elderly.

With an annual food bill of around £1.4million, one of the high value categories is catering. Five out of the Council’s seven food suppliers are based in the County - the other two are Welsh.