RESOLVED:

1.    That the response to the Overview and Scrutiny Commission be agreed;

2.    That having considered all of the information in the Cabinet report and noted the positive assurance statement given by the Director of Corporate Services based on the proposed Council Tax strategy, the maximum Council Tax in 2021/22, equating to a Band D Council Tax of £1,340.72, which is an increase of below 5% be approved and recommended to Council for approval.

3.    That all of the latest information and the comments from the scrutiny process be considered, and recommendations be made to Council as appropriate.

4.    That the Business Plan 2021-25 including the General Fund Budget and Council Tax Strategy for 2021/22, and the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) for 2021-25 as submitted, along with the draft Equality Assessments (EAs), be approved and recommended to Council for approval subject to any proposed amendments agreed at this meeting;

5.    That having considered all of the latest information and the comments from the scrutiny process, the Capital Investment Programme (as detailed in Annex 1 to the Capital Strategy); the Treasury Management Strategy (Section 5), including the detailed recommendations in that Section, incorporating the Prudential Indicators and the Capital Strategy (Section 4) as submitted and reported upon be approved and recommended to Council for approval, subject to any proposed amendments agreed at this meeting;

6.    That it be noted that the GLA precept will not be agreed by the London Assembly until the 25 February 2021, but the provisional figure has been incorporated into the draft MTFS.

7.    That officers be requested to review the savings proposals agreed and where possible bring them forward to the earliest possible implementation date.

8.    That it be noted that there may be minor amendments to figures in this report as a result of new information being received after the deadline for dispatch and that this will be amended for the report to Council in March.

9.    That the Risk Management Strategy be approved.

The Cabinet Member for Finance began by thanking the Director of Corporate Services and her staff for preparing the draft business plan, particularly in a period of such uncertainty with a number of late announcements on funding.  He thanked Councillor Southgate and all the scrutiny Members for their flexibility in scrutinising the draft budget and savings proposals.

The Cabinet Member highlighted the main points for consideration and advised that the financial position was slightly better than it had been at the end of 2020, in part due to a slightly better than expected Government grant and a number of one-off grants which had reduced the overall level of savings required to balance the budget for 2021/22.  However the longer term picture remained uncertain due to the projected impact of the pandemic into 2023/24, with a reduced council tax base and difficulty in forecasting business rates at a time of much uncertainty for businesses.  The gap in 2021/22 had only been met by several million pounds of savings, a proposed council tax increase at the maximum level and the levying of the Adult Social Care precept.  It was unfortunate that at a time of hardship for many, the Government was forcing local authorities to both cut services and raise council tax by not properly funding councils through the pandemic.

The Cabinet Member addressed the recommendations of scrutiny panels, welcoming the hard work of all members of staff and supported the spirit in which the recommendations had been made.  Although not a panacea, digital solutions would be explored where possible.  He advised that the review of the learning disability day care offer was driven by a desire to transform services rather than make savings, however the challenges faced by vulnerable users would be considered as part of any consultation.  He thanked Councillor Southgate for his positive reference made at the Commission and highlighted that the future financial position of the Council was dependent on the funding decisions made by the Government.

The Director of Corporate Services drew the Cabinet’s attention to section two of the report which set out the issues already highlighted and the changes since the previous version of the draft business plan in January.  The report included the positive assurance statement of the s151 officer required under s25 of the Local Government Act 2003 and the worst case scenario in respect of the Council’s reserves and advised that work was on going to address the deficit in the Dedicated Schools Grant. The gap in 2022/23 had come down from £5.9m to just under £3.9m, which increased to £11m in 2023/24 so the work to understand the impact of Covid on the Council and the local economy would continue.  A number of figures were awaited and if received these would be updated for the Council meeting on 3 March.

The Chair thanked the Director for her detailed presentation and to her team for their work on the draft budget.

The Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health thanked  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4