Issue - meetings

Executive Board considered the attached report.

RECOMMENDED: That Council approve the initial budget proposals for 2015/16 as set out in Appendix 1.

          Executive Board had considered a report of the Operational Director, Finance, on initial revenue budget proposals for 2015/16.

          Members were advised that, under Standing Order 16(3), a recorded vote was required on all matters that related to decisions on the Budget.

          The following Members voted FOR the motion:

Councillors  S. Baker, M. Bradshaw, J. Bradshaw, D. Cargill, E. Cargill, Cassidy, Cole, Dennett, Fry, Gerrard, Gilligan, Harris, P. Hignett, R. Hignett, S. Hill, V. Hill, Horabin, Howard, Jones, M. Lloyd Jones, P. Lloyd Jones, C. Loftus, K. Loftus, A. Lowe, J. Lowe, MacManus, McDermott, A. McInerney, T. McInerney, Morley, Nelson, Nolan, Osborne, Parker, Philbin, Polhill, C. Plumpton Walsh, N. Plumpton Walsh, Ratcliffe, Joe Roberts, June Roberts, Rowe, Sinnott, G. Stockton, Thompson, Wainwright, Wallace, Wharton, Woolfall, Wright and Zygadllo.

          There were no votes against the motion.

          There were no abstentions.

          RESOLVED: That the initial budget proposals for 2015/16 as set out in Appendix 1 attached to the report, be approved.

The Board considered a report of the Operational Director, Finance, on initial revenue budget proposals for 2015/16.

          The Board was advised that budget savings proposals for 2015/16 were being developed by the Budget Working Group. However, a number of those proposals detailed at Appendix 1, could be implemented immediately in order to achieve a part-year saving in 2014/15. In addition, a number of the proposals would take time to implement and therefore by commencing the process as soon as possible, would assist in ensuring that they could be fully implemented by 1 April 2015. Further, the information in Appendix 1 also presented the impact in 2016/17 of certain savings proposals.

          The Budget Working Group had proposed the use of £5.5m from the Council’s reserves to provide a one-off saving which would delay the need to achieve these savings until 2016/17, thereby allowing additional time to assist the Council with identifying the necessary permanent savings and reshaping the business where necessary to achieve this.

          It was noted that the Government would announce its Grant Settlement for Local Government in late December 2014, at which point the Council’s actual funding gap would be identified. Further savings proposals that would enable the Council to deliver a balanced budget would be recommended to Council at its meeting on 4 March 2015.

          RESOLVED: That Council be recommended to approve the initial budget proposals for 2015/16 as set out in Appendix 1.