Issue - meetings
Medium Term Financial Plan 2025/26 to 2029/30 update
Meeting: 07/10/2024 - Executive (Item 34)
34 Medium Term Financial Plan and Strategy 2025/26 to 2029/30 update PDF 289 KB
Additional documents:
Decision:
Following consideration of the officer report, appendices and discussion, the Executive resolved:
· To approve the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) for 2025/26 to 2029/30.
· To agree that the Council continues with the aim of avoiding section 114 notice by taking all of the necessary actions and continuing to operate as if one had been issued.
Minutes:
The Leader of the Council, Cllr Bill Revans, invited the Lead Member for Finance, Procurement and Performance, Cllr Liz Leyshon, to introduce the report.
Cllr Leyshon highlighted that: the MTFS has been extended to 2029/2030; the assumptions in that have been updated following budget setting; the ongoing work to create a viable and stable council; the list of actions taken so far.
Cllr Leyshon then handed over to Maria Christofi, Interim Chief Finance Officer (S151 Officer), who detailed: the Dedicated Schools Grant deficit; the MTFP/S would be returning to the committee twice a year including as part of budget setting in February; the budget gap was predicted to be £104m in 2025/26 and would rise in four years to £199m; the financial challenges facing the council and that the 2024/25 budget had been set using reserves that need to be replenished; the background information used to inform the financial strategy; the challenge of planning financially based on one year funding; that the forecast overspend, cost of living crisis, and demographic changes have been taken into account; the three scenarios presented in the report; the reprofiling of the capital programme.
The Leader of the Council, Cllr Bill Revans, invited comments from Committee Members and other Members present. Questions and points raised included: the potential impact of an increase in living wage; the impact of the sale of commercial investment properties; the inflation figures used for each scenario; the impact of the pay award and pay inflation; the status of reserves; the work ongoing to avoid a Section 114 notice; the need for proposals to be brought to Scrutiny Committees; the need for the council to work together to progress savings.
The Leader of the Council concluded the discussion and proceeded to a vote on the recommendations, which were agreed unanimously.
Following consideration of the officer report, appendices and discussion, the Executive resolved:
· To approve the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) for 2025/26 to 2029/30.
· To agree that the Council continues with the aim of avoiding section 114 notice by taking all of the necessary actions and continuing to operate as if one had been issued.