RESOLVED

1.    That the draft savings/income proposals (Appendix 7 (a)) and associated draft equalities analyses (Appendix 9 (a)) put forward by officers be agreed and referred to the Overview and Scrutiny panels and Commission in January 2019 for consideration and comment.

2.    That the savings and associated draft equalities analyses for the savings noted in October (Appendices 8 and 9(b)) be agreed.

3.    That the latest amendments to the draft Capital Programme 2019-23 which was considered by Cabinet on 15 October 2018 and by scrutiny in November 2018 be agreed (Appendix 5).

4.    That the proposed amendments to savings previously agreed (Appendix 7 (b) and (c)) be agreed.

5.    That the proposed Council Tax Base for 2019/20 set out in paragraph 2.6 and Appendix 1 be agreed.

6.    That the draft services plans be noted (Appendix 3).

The Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance presented the report and highlighted the uncertainty which had been caused by the delayed announcement from the Government on the financial settlement, the economic uncertainty around the Brexit negotiations and the delayed parliamentary vote, which was concerning for local businesses and local people. 

In addition to substantial savings already agreed, the Council still had to identify a further £20m by 2022/23, which represented a quarter of the total council tax collected by the Council in one year.  He highlighted the further £8.9m of savings identified and welcomed the input from the scrutiny process to ensure the Cabinet was proposing the right things.  He acknowledged that the Council had been placed in a difficult position, however it was important to ensure a robust budget to avoid a situation similar to that of Northamptonshire County Council.

The Director of Corporate Services advised that the draft capital programme and capital strategy had been included for scrutiny to review; and requested comments on the draft service plans which would be fed into the next draft.  Equalities impact assessments had been included to assist Members in their considerations and it was highlighted that not all savings proposals required an equalities assessment to be included.  The draft outcome had been included at this stage and the documents would be updated as the budget process progressed.  The MTFS contained the maximum assumptions around the increases in council tax and the Adult Social Care precept and these would be updated as appropriate as a result of any changes announced.  It was not currently known when the Government’s financial settlement would be announced, and this would potentially impact on the savings proposed.

The Leader thanked all for their contributions and stressed that the Council would do everything possible to ensure that it achieved a balanced budget and welcomed the input of the scrutiny process.

RESOLVED

1.    That the draft savings/income proposals (Appendix 7 (a)) and associated draft equalities analyses (Appendix 9 (a)) put forward by officers be agreed and referred to the Overview and Scrutiny panels and Commission in January 2019 for consideration and comment.

2.    That the savings and associated draft equalities analyses for the savings noted in October (Appendices 8 and 9(b)) be agreed.

3.    That the latest amendments to the draft Capital Programme 2019-23 which was considered by Cabinet on 15 October 2018 and by scrutiny in November 2018 be agreed (Appendix 5).

4.    That the proposed amendments to savings previously agreed (Appendix 7 (b) and (c)) be agreed.

5.    That the proposed Council Tax Base for 2019/20 set out in paragraph 2.6 and Appendix 1 be agreed.

6.    That the draft services plans be noted (Appendix 3).