A council’s leader and her deputy are on a collision course over whether Powys County Council’s (PCC) farm estate will be expected to play its part in future cuts.

A statement has been made by deputy leader and finance portfolio holder Cllr Aled Davies (Conservative – Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant/Llansilin) on the financial Armageddon facing the authority.

He claims that up to £46 million needs to be cut over the next three years.

At the last cabinet meeting, PCC leader, Cllr Rosemaris Harris (Independent – Llangynidr) noted that she would want discussions to stop any further sale of the farming estate.

Some councillors had suggested selling off parts of the estate to help plug last year’s funding black-hole and keep the council tax low.

Cllr Harris who is responsible for the farm estate, said: “One thing I would like to point out.

“I can see we have put in £714,000 in capital receipts (sales) from our county farms.

“I’m not sure that sort of contribution can go on indefinitely without it affecting the core farms , sooner or later I would appreciate a conversation about that.

“I know we have sold off spare houses, bits of land but we want to keep our county farms estate and we’ll look at that in the future.”

Cllr Davies in his statement said that various funding scenarios show the funding gap ranges from £30 million to £46 million over three financial years.

And an anticipated gap of between £8 million and £13 million next year.

Cllr Davies, said: “We have modelled a range of funding scenarios to help us understand what funding could be available over the next three years – even with a flat-cash settlement.

“It is inevitable that the way in which we deliver our services will continue to change and the levels of service offered will be guided by what we can afford.”

Mr Davies said PCC would  look to “engage with the public” this autumn as proposals for next year’s budget are developed.

He has already said that the starting point for Council Tax hikes will be five per cent each year, for the next three.

With 144 holdings and 11,400 acres of land, PCC’s farms estate is the largest of its kind in Wales and the fifth largest in the UK.

Most of the land is in Montgomeryshire with some holdings in both Brecknockshire and Radnorshire.

The ethos behind keeping the estate is that it gives people people the chance to set up and develop farm-based businesses in rural areas.