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Issue - meetings

Financial Performance Report 2024-25 Quarter Two

 

 

Meeting: 05/12/2024 - Cabinet (Item 36)

36 Financial Performance Report 2024-25 Quarter Two pdf icon PDF 962 KB

Purpose

This report sets of the second budget monitoring position for the 2024/25 financial year.

 

Recommendation

That Cabinet resolves to:

  1. Review and notes the financial position set out in this report.
  2. Approve the recommendation in paragraph 9.3: Continue to review in-year opportunities with Publica and Ubico to mitigate the forecast financial position.
  3. Approve the recommendation in paragraph 9.5: Implement an Authority to Fill process with authorisation for any recruitment activity.
  4. Approve the recommendation in paragraph 9.6: Deputy Chief Executive and Section 151 Officer to provide guidance to all service leads on criteria under which external agency support can be commissioned (subject to business case assessment).
  5. Approve the recommendation in paragraph 9.7: accelerate development of refreshed Savings & Transformation plan to ensure adequate cost reductions are identified, scoped, and planned over the MTFS period.
  6. Approve the recommendation in paragraph 9.8: review of fees and charges as part of the 2025/26 budget setting process from a cost recovery position.
  7. Approve the recommendation in paragraph 9.9: Publica Review Phase 2 – the design-led principle Consideration of cost must ensure that the additional cost of bring services back to the Council are quantified with mitigating actions taken to reduce the potential impact on the MTFS.
  8. Approve the revised Capital Programme to include £0.208m of expenditure in relation to Cirencester Leisure Centre decarbonisation work including the installation of solar PV and triple glazing funded through the Government’s Swimming Pool Support Fund.

 

Additional documents:

Decision:

The Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Transformation, Councillor Evemy introduced the report.

 

The recommendations were proposed by Councillor Evemy and Councillor Joe Harris seconded them.

 

RESOLVED: That Cabinet

1. NOTED the financial position set out in this report.

2. APPROVED the recommendation in paragraph 9.3: Continue to review in-year opportunities with Publica and Ubico to mitigate the forecast financial position.

3. APPROVED the recommendation in paragraph 9.5: Implement an Authority to Fill process with authorisation for any recruitment activity.

4. APPROVED the recommendation in paragraph 9.6: Deputy Chief Executive and Section 151 Officer to provide guidance to all service leads on criteria under which external agency support can be commissioned (subject to business case assessment).

5. APPROVED the recommendation in paragraph 9.7: accelerate development of refreshed Savings & Transformation plan to ensure adequate cost reductions are identified, scoped, and planned over the MTFS period.

6. APPROVED the recommendation in paragraph 9.8: review of fees and charges as part of the 2025/26 budget setting process from a cost recovery position.

7. APPROVED the recommendation in paragraph 9.9: Publica Review Phase 2 – the design-led principle Consideration of cost must ensure that the additional cost of bring services back to the Council are quantified with mitigating actions taken to reduce the potential impact on the MTFS.

8. APPROVED the revised Capital Programme to include £0.208m of expenditure in relation to Cirencester Leisure Centre decarbonisation work including the installation of solar PV and triple glazing funded through the Government’s Swimming Pool Support Fund.

 

 

Voting Record

 

5 For, 0 Against, 0 Abstention

Minutes:

The Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Transformation, Councillor Evemy, introduced the report.

 

  • There was a £250,000 surplus projection but this was lower than the £500,000 surplus projected in the budget.
  • The report didn’t include any forecast for Planning Services spending as this was still being determined by officers.
  • The pay award had been settled which was £400,000 lower than projected which would benefit the Council’s finances and be set aside as part of the financial resilience reserve.
  • Phase 1 of Publica Review was projected as a £446,000 a year enduring impact. The majority of this cost related to providing the Local Government Pension Scheme to employees who had transferred to the Council from Publica.
  • The waste and recycling rezoning was projected to provide a saving of £375,000. 
  • Higher than expected interest rates had provided a £367,000 increase to the Council’s treasury management income.
  • Some adverse variations to income included building control, public conveniences and land charges.
  • There was a focus on managing finances which included focusing on the use of consultants, savings and transformation items and fees and charges.
  • The report included a revised capital programme which added in £208,000 for leisure centre decarbonisation works from the swimming pool support fund. However there had been an underspend on many of the capital programme projects.
  • The policy statement on Local Government Financing had provided 3.2% increase in core spending power for councils.
  • The increase to employer national insurance contributions would be compensated by the UK Government for direct employee costs but not for Publica and Ubico staff. This would need to be factored into the budget in February 2025.
  • The Local Government Finance Settlement was due on 19 December 2024 alongside the UK Government White Paper on devolution.

 

Councillor Joe Harris as the seconder noted the following points:

 

  • There were still many pressures on local government finance and one year settlements had caused many financial problems.
  • Rural areas needed to be supported as well as urban areas especially for issues like deprivation.

 

There were no other comments on the report.

 

 

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