The first stage of the budget process was the ‘Financial Prospects and Budget Strategy’ report which had been reported to the Finance Advisory Committee and Cabinet in September 2015, and had taken the budget agreed by Full Council in February 2015 and updated it including rolling the 10-year budget on a further year.  The Portfolio Holder for Finance presented the report before Members which set out progress made in preparing the 2016/17 budget since that time.

He advised that all seven Advisory Committees had discussed growth and savings suggestions relating to services within their terms of reference.  The only changes made to the budget since the previous report had been the impact of the Sennocke/Bradbourne hotel and car park development which had been approved by Council in November 2015.  By building in the changes using the proposed funding methods, income from New Homes Bonus in 2016/17 – 2018/19 was no longer required to deliver a balanced 10-year budget, instead any income that was received from Revenue Support Grant or New Homes Bonus would be used to finance the hotel.

He was therefore, pleased to report that from 2016/17, there would no longer be any Revenue Support Grant or New Homes Bonus in the 10-year budget, and the Council would be financially self-sufficient from direct government funding with effect from 1 April 2016.

This statement was welcomed by all Members present.

The Chief Finance Officer reported that as agreed in September 2015, the Council was continuing to use the 10-year budget strategy, which was now in its sixth year.  This remained unusual in Local Government as many other Local Authorities were still only looking at the short term, as they saw budgeting for 3, 5 or 10 years ahead as being past their financial cliff edge.

The Governments Comprehensive Spending Review on 25 November 2015 did not include enough detail to change any assumptions in the 10-year budget.  It had not been officially announced when the Government’s grant settlement to Local Authorities would be, but it had been rumoured that it would be on 15 December 2015.

Individual comments from the Advisory Committee Members had been included at Appendix F to the report and Members’ attention was drawn to the supplementary agenda containing the feedback from the Finance Advisory Committee.  The Advisory Committees had recommended to Cabinet all growth and savings proposals listed in Appendix D to the report and explained in more detail in Appendix E to the report.

Further recommendations from the Advisory Committees, to Cabinet, were as follows:

Planning Advisory Committee

·                      investigate the possibility of charging for householder pre application advice; and

·                      bear in mind, consideration of the future possibility of setting up a rival land registry company.

Finance Advisory Committee

·                      that Sencio contribute more towards, or all of the cost of, the asset maintenance of its sites to be considered as part of a review of the contract with them.

Policy & Performance Advisory Committee

·                      investigate meetings of the Council being paperless.

The 10-year budget assumed new net savings in 2016/17 of £500,000.  The growth and savings proposals included in Appendices D and E of the report, totalled £448,000 resulting in a shortfall of £52,000.

The Portfolio Holder for Finance brought Members attention to SCIA 3, and the request from the Economic & Community Development Advisory Committee for a growth item in order to have a full time Tourism Officer.  The Portfolio Holder for Economic & Community Development advised that the departure of the Head of Economic Development and Property whose focus had been on both the council’s assets and the delivery of new income earning assets, gave an opportunity to have a role that was more equitably balanced between Property and Economic Development with a particular focus within the Economic Development part of the role on Tourism as the second largest employer after land based industries within the district and its huge opportunities for growth.  Therefore the need for a separate resource was reduced and the growth item could be withdrawn. The Portfolio Holder for Finance pointed out that this would help reduce the shortfall by £39,000.

Cabinet discussed the new participative approach taken at the Advisory Committees which appeared to have been successful in making Members feel more engaged with the budget setting process, and were keen to highlight to the Advisory Committees how their suggestions and recommendations would be fed into the process. 

Public Sector Equality Duty

Members noted that consideration had been given to impacts under the Public Sector Equality Duty.

Resolved:  That

a)        all Members be advised that their comments and feedback would be considered going forward in the budget setting process;

b)        the growth item for a full time Tourism Officer requested at SCIA 3 be removed; and

c)         all other proposals put forward by the Advisory Committees would be considered in the budget setting process going forward.