Issue - meetings

[Report of the Chief Operating Officer. To be introduced by the Cabinet Member for Finance and Health.]To consider  the Council's  proposed Medium Term Financial Strategy   for 2017/18-2021/22 including the Capital Programme.  The final budget and Council Tax for 2017/18 will go forward to Cabinet and Full council in February 2017.

The Cabinet Member for Finance and Health introduced the report which set out the strategic financial context and details of the major budget changes being proposed for the five year planning period 2017/18 to 2021/22, and, in addition, the process for setting the Council’s 2017/18 budget.

The Cabinet were aware that this had been a difficult year for the budget with a £20m overspend. However, it was important to keep in mind that the MTFS, devised in 2015, had provided real clarity on how to deliver a sustainable financial plan and had made the required strategic choices on how to prioritise resources in the context of staggering cuts to services and budgets.

The Cabinet Member continued to outline the context in delivering savings against the backdrop of a 45% reduction in staff and by having 12 fewer Council buildings.

The Cabinet Member further described the key influences on the budget for this year  which were not known in 2015.These were: business rate devolution with details of how devolution will work still to be agreed, Brexit, Housing policy reforms, welfare reform. Therefore, it was prudent to examine the MTFS assumptions made in 2015 to understand if accurate which these changes in mind.

Ultimately there was a £20m shortfall and the budget papers examined closing this gap through the use of the MTFS principles agreed in 2015 which still applied and  focussed on growth, early help and intervention .

The Cabinet Member thanked participants in the pre -budget consultation which had highlighted the difficulties both residents and officers had faced in finding priorities for spend. The Cabinet Member further encouraged residents, interested in the financial sustainability of the Council, to examine and comment on the proposals which would be released for consultation this week.

Councillor Weston, Cabinet Member for Children and Families provided assurance to Members and colleagues that, in coming to Priority 1 saving proposals, the Children’s Service had continued to prioritise providing the support of safeguarding services to vulnerable children. The majority of the proposals focused on transformation and improvement of the service. There would be continuing investment in early help and targeted services to stop escalations into social care services. The Children’s Service were not compromising the safeguarding of children and young people and the continued aim was to provide high quality support against a back drop of the significant cuts to Council budget funding.

In response to questions from Councillor Morris, the following information was noted:

• The Haringey Development Vehicle meets the growth priority for the borough and would enable the Council to increase income through the business rates and Council tax rate base by the provision of additional homes and businesses. The Council did not currently have the funding and expertise to drive growth through the development of new homes and business. The Council have land and already undertake transactions with developers. A joint partnership with a preferred partner would allow the Council to better patrol what happens with land deals to generate regeneration. The Council  ...  view the full minutes text for item 137