The Leader’s Portfolio

To consider report FIN/537 of the Head of Corporate Finance, which was referred to the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Commission held on 22 November 2021.

RESOLVED

That the Cabinet recommends to Full Council the approval of the Budget Strategy 2022/23 to 2026/27 and to:

a)         Note the uncertainties around Government funding prior to the settlement in December and the delay in Local Government Funding reforms such as business rates retention and the future of New Homes Bonus.

b)         Note, for the purpose of projections, the current budget deficit of £138,566for 2022/23 before use of reserves, on the basis of a Council tax increase of 2.31% which is £4.95 on a Band D in property 2022/23. 

c)         Work towards balancing this over a four-year period, including putting back into reserves when the Budget is in surplus.  There may be a need to use reserves over the next three to four years to balance the budget together with ongoing savings, efficiencies and additional income through the transformation programme.

d)         Note elsewhere on this Agenda there is a report on the Climate Change Emergency Action Plan.  The costs identified in 2022/23 are included within existing budgets, however there will be a need to fully cost the plan over the coming years and decisions will be required on how to fund the plan.

e)         Note that savings previously agreed and included in the Budget Strategy are required to ensure a sustainable budget.

f)          Delegate to the Leader of the Council in consultation with the Chief Executive and the Head of Corporate Finance to approve a discretionary business rates scheme to distribute the share to Crawley Borough Council of the £1.5b business rates relief as outlined in Section 5.3 of report FIN/537.

g)         Note that items for the Capital Programme are driven by the need for the upkeep of council assets and environmental obligations and schemes will also be considered that are spend to save or spend to earn but that such prioritisation should not preclude the initial consideration of capital projects that could deliver social value.

h)         Agree the inclusion of new capital schemes in future budgets with the value of £948,460 as identified in Table 8 of report FIN/537.

i)          Reduce the Gigabit capital programme of £2.7m to £1.35m funded from the West Sussex business rates pool to avoid duplication with Towns Fund Gigabit scheme as identified in section 9.3 of report FIN/537.

j)          Approve the revised Crawley Homes capital investment plan in Appendix D of report FIN/537 which includes the financial year 2024/25 and the garage repairs capital budget which was transferred to the General Fund.

k)         Note that the Budget is aligned to the Council’s Corporate Priorities.

Reasons for the Recommendations

a)         To continue with the implementation of the Council’s budget strategy and to deal with the Council’s projected budget deficit which is higher than previously projected due to the impact of the pandemic on future Council tax and Business rates income projections and also impacting other income sources such as fees and charges.

b)         To reaffirm the criteria for capital programme bids.

c)         To note that until the Local Government Finance Settlement is known in December 2021 these projections are highly likely to change.

The Leader of the Council presented report FIN/537 of the Head Corporate Finance.  The report set out the projected financial position for 2022/23 to 2026/27 for the General Fund, Housing Revenue Account, capital programme and the underlying assumptions.  The report also set the policy framework for the budget process, recognising that there were a range of options for capital investment, income generation, savings and Council Tax levels; none of which were to be considered in isolation.  The overall objective was to work towards a balanced General Fund budget over a four-year period, this however may be difficult due to the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic.  The Leader commented that the difficult decisions taken last year had meant that the Council was in a better position than expected and similar decisions were not required to be taken this year.

It was noted that currently there was a budget deficit of £138,566 for 2022/23 before use of reserves and before any savings are identified, on the basis of a Council tax increase of 2.31% which is £4.95 on a Band D in property 2022/23. It was proposed also to budget a further £948,460 for new capital schemes.

Councillor T Belben presented the Overview and Scrutiny Commission’s comments on the report to the Cabinet following consideration of the matter at its meeting on 22 November 2021, which included:

·         Acknowledged that any costs associated with the climate change action plan had not been budgeted and may require in savings being sought.

·         The Commission were pleased that the pension fund had surpassed expectations resulting in a £145,000.

·         Also noting the floor letting of the Town Hall was slower than expected in light of the impact of the pandemic and the new ways of working and that might lead to the need for further savings in the future.

Councillor Crow was invited to speak on the item commenting that the budget projections were pleasing, but the Council should remain vigilant as it was finely balanced, and a small knock could easily affect the projection.

Councillor Jones complimented the Budget Strategy and commented that it was a real achievement in light of a very difficult year.

RESOLVED

That the Cabinet recommends to Full Council the approval of the Budget Strategy 2022/23 to 2026/27 and:

a)         Notes the uncertainties around Government funding prior to the settlement in December and the delay in Local Government Funding reforms such as business rates retention and the future of New Homes Bonus.

b)         Notes, for the purpose of projections, the current budget deficit of £138,566for 2022/23 before use of reserves, on the basis of a Council tax increase of 2.31% which is £4.95 on a Band D in property 2022/23. 

c)         Works towards balancing this over a four-year period, including putting back into reserves when the Budget is in surplus.  There may be a need to use reserves over the next three to four years to balance the budget together with ongoing savings, efficiencies and additional income through the transformation programme.

d)         Notes elsewhere on this Agenda there is a report on the Climate Change Emergency Action Plan.  The costs identified in 2022/23 are included within existing budgets, however there will be a need to fully cost the plan over the coming years and decisions will be required on how to fund the plan.

e)         Notes that savings previously agreed and included in the Budget Strategy are required to ensure a sustainable budget.

f)          Delegates to the Leader of the Council in consultation with the Chief Executive and the Head of Corporate Finance to approve a discretionary business rates scheme to distribute the share to Crawley Borough Council of the £1.5b business rates relief as outlined in Section 5.3 of report FIN/537.

g)         Notes that items for the Capital Programme are driven by the need for the upkeep of council assets and environmental obligations and schemes will also be considered that are spend to save or spend to earn but that such prioritisation should not preclude the initial consideration of capital projects that could deliver social value.

h)         Agrees the inclusion of new capital schemes in future budgets with the value of £948,460 as identified in Table 8 of report FIN/537.

i)          Reduces the Gigabit capital programme of £2.7m to £1.35m funded from the West Sussex business rates pool to avoid duplication with Towns Fund Gigabit scheme as identified in section 9.3 of report FIN/537.

j)          Approves the revised Crawley Homes capital investment plan in Appendix D of report FIN/537 which includes the financial year 2024/25 and the garage repairs capital budget which was transferred to the General Fund.

k)         Notes that the Budget is aligned to the Council’s Corporate Priorities.

Reasons for the Recommendations

a)         To continue with the implementation of the Council’s budget strategy and to deal with the Council’s projected budget deficit which is higher than previously projected due to the impact of the pandemic on future Council tax and Business rates income projections and also impacting other income sources such as fees and charges.

b)         To reaffirm the criteria for capital programme bids.

c)         To note that until the Local Government Finance Settlement is known in December 2021 these projections are highly likely to change.