Issue - meetings

The report of the Director – Finance and Corporate Services is attached.

It was RESOLVED that the report be approved and the following be noted:

a)               the projected revenue budget efficiency for the year of £0.810m and proposals to earmark this for cost pressures as set out in Appendix A and paragraph 4.1 of the report;

b)               the projected capital budget efficiencies of £1.466m including the budget changes as set out in Appendix D to the report; and

c)                the projected overspend on Special Expenses of £19k, as set out in paragraph 4.7 of the report.

The Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Finance, Transformation and Governance, Councillor Virdi, presented the report of the Director – Finance and Corporate Services, which set out the Quarter 2 budget position for revenue and capital.

Councillor Virdi was pleased to report a relatively positive position; however, there remained much uncertainty around Local Government finance, including Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) and it was noted that following on from the recent Autumn Statement from the Chancellor, it was unlikely that the Government would be increasing councils’ spending powers.

In respect of revenue, Councillor Virdi advised that there was an overall budget efficiency for the year of £0.810m and referred to Table 1 of the report and Appendix B, which highlighted the reasons, with Appendix A detailing proposals to earmark some of this for additional cost pressures. Appendix F detailed a projected minor overspend on the Special Expenses of £19k, with details of that in paragraph 4.7. Paragraphs 4.9 to 4.12 provided details of additional financial pressures that the Council continued to face and Councillor Virdi reiterated that the Council had no external borrowing. He stated that the Transformation and Efficiency Plan was progressing well and on target. In respect of capital, Appendices C, D and E detailed its overall position, with a projected underspend of £1.466m, with Table 2 highlighting the reasons.

In conclusion, whilst noting the Council’s positive financial position, Councillor Virdi said that things could change, and the Council’s healthy reserves allowed it to mitigate risks, whilst investing in services for the benefit of residents, and looking ahead, reserves would be required to address future pressures and uncertainties.

In seconding the recommendation, Councillor J Wheeler referred to ongoing financial uncertainties, particularly associated with LGR and how the Council’s resilience ensured that it remained in a positive position financially to allow it to make the best choices to benefit residents. He thanked the Director – Finance and Corporate Services and his team for their continuing hard work to manage the Council’s finances so well.

It was RESOLVED that the report be approved and the following be noted:

a)               the projected revenue budget efficiency for the year of £0.810m and proposals to earmark this for cost pressures as set out in Appendix A and paragraph 4.1 of the report;

b)               the projected capital budget efficiencies of £1.466m including the budget changes as set out in Appendix D to the report; and

c)                the projected overspend on Special Expenses of £19k, as set out in paragraph 4.7 of the report.