Agenda item

The Council has to adopt a budget for 2013/14 as the basis for calculating its level of Council Tax and has to base that budget on its plans for service delivery during the year, recognising any changes in service demand that may arise in future years.

The Board agreed recommendations to the Executive at their December meeting for consideration as part of draft one of the 2013/14 budget (attached as an appendix to the report to Executive). Officers will provide a verbal update at the meeting on the recommendations where required.

This will be an opportunity for the Board to consider draft one of the 2013/14 budget (report to 7 January 2013 Executive attached) and make any observations/comments/recommendations to the Executive and receive an update on progress against recommendations from previous budget scrutiny reviews (please note this appendix will follow as it is currently being finalised).

The final 2013/14 budget will be presented to Council for consideration on 25 February 2013.

The Chairman welcomed the Leader of the Council, the Lead Member for Financial Management, the Head of Finance and Procurement, the Corporate Finance Manager and the Strategic Finance Accountant to the meeting.

The Head of Finance and Procurement circulated an overview of progress against recommendations of budget scrutiny work undertaken for the 2011/12 and 2012/13 budgets. The Board was advised that 15 of the 18 recommendations had been completed, two partially completed and one deferred to 2013/14. Members agreed that it was useful to receive the update which demonstrated that the budget scrutiny reviews had an impact and requested that a further update be provided in six months to include the value that each recommendation had expected to achieve as well as an update on the recommendations of the budget scrutiny 2013/14.

The Chairman advised the Board that he had attended the January 2013 meeting of Executive to present the Board’s budget scrutiny 2013/14 recommendations. Subject to some amendments to the capital programme proposals, all recommendations had been accepted.

The Executive had noted the Board’s concern about the decreasing level of the capital pot and agreed that the Board should consider adding  an item to its work programme to look at the capital pot and how the pot could be managed and what options there would be if it wasn’t topped up. 

The Lead Member for Financial Management explained that CDC had previously had high capital funds as a result of the sale of housing stock and investment however it was reducing rapidly as it was spent on projects across the district. There were conflicting demands for capital money and as it reduced, it would be important to consider ways of managing it.

The Board agreed that it was important to ensure that the capital pot was preserved. Members commented that whilst this year there had been bids requiring maintenance work of a capital nature, they had been pleased to support the bid for a conditions survey which would lead to a maintenance schedule for the council’s assets.

In response to Members’ questions, the Head of Finance and Procurement provided an overview of Council Tax Support Funding whereby deductions will be made at source rather than paid back. It was confirmed that CDC would be passporting the full grant in 2012/13 to town and parish councils but this would only cover 86% of their shortfall. It was anticipated that there would be grant in 2014/15 but it was not yet possible to confirm how this would be allocated.

The Lead Member for Financial Management and the Leader of the Council commented that it was therefore important for town and parish councils to be looking at their own funding and ways they would be able to address future shortfalls.

The Head of Finance and Procurement provided an overview of draft 1 of the 2013/14 budget which had been approved by the Executive at their 4 January meeting. The Board was advised that whilst there was currently a £230k shortfall, it was anticipated that a balanced budget would be achieved.

Members noted that an area for further review in terms of achieving a balanced budget was the deletion of vacant posts. Members requested that further information be provided on vacant posts to be deleted and if there a process for the deletion of vacant posts.

In terms of longer term budget planning, the Board was advised that now the Government settlement figure was know the Medium Term Financial Strategy was being reworked for the next four years

The Board commended the Head of Finance and Procurement and her team for their hard work and in particular for supporting the Board’s budget scrutiny 2013/14 review and thanked the Executive for considering and supporting the Board’s comments.

Resolved

(1)              That replenishment of the capital pot be added to the Board’s work programme and a scoping document be drafted in due course.

(2)              That officers be requested to provide further information on the deletion of vacant posts.