Agenda item

To enable Cabinet to consider the updated financial forecast, including budget changes in 2022/23 and budget proposals for 2023/24 for consultation with the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

RESOLVED that Cabinet:

a)     approves the updated Financial Forecast including a revised position for 2022/23 and proposed position for 2023/24, as set out in the Portfolio Holder’s report and its Appendices;

b)     requests the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee’s comments on this latest financial forecast and proposed position for 2023/24; and

c)     accepts the funding made available to the Council as part of the Shared Prosperity Fund (including the Rural England Prosperity Fund element) and authorises the Portfolio Holder for Business and Economic Growth to agree any associated expenditure.

Cabinet considered the updated financial forecast, including budget changes in 2022/23 and budget proposals for 2023/24 for consultation with the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Cabinet was aware that a ‘live’ 10-year forecast was maintained and reported to Members throughout the year and that the most up-to-date position in December each year was translated into the detailed budget for the following year for consultation with the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

As part of maintaining a ‘live’ forecast, this Portfolio Holder report ‘built’ on the last position that had been presented to Cabinet on 4 November 2022. With this in mind, further adjustments had been identified for 2022/23 and 2023/24 as set out in Appendix A to this Portfolio Holder report. 

As set out in the earlier reports to Cabinet, this year had seen a number of emerging issues both nationally and globally that had had a significant impact on the Council’s own financial position e.g. inflation, supply chain disruption, energy cost increases, commodity price increases along with associated secondary impacts.

However, the Council had maintained a prudent and sustainable approach to its long term plan, which had provided the ‘platform’ against which it could consider its financial position in response to the very challenging economic position it now faced.

It was reported that further changes to the long-term forecast had been made since 4 November 2022, with a revised position set out in Appendix B.

In comparison with the position reported to Cabinet on 4 November 2022, the net overall position had improved by £68,100 and £646,530 for 2022/23 and 2023/24 respectively. However, it was not proposed to make corresponding adjustments to the funding identified to balance the budget as set out in Section 3 of Appendix A at the present time, as more changes were expected before final budget proposals were presented to Cabinet in January 2023.

Members were informed that a review of reserves had also been undertaken, which had highlighted the need to continue to maintain a number of reserves to support key actions / activities as part of the Council’s overall prudent and sustainable approach to managing its finances.

Cabinet was made aware that, at the time of this meeting, the Local Government Finance Settlement for 2023/24 had yet to be announced. Therefore, any changes emerging from the settlement would be reflected in the forecast that would be reported to Cabinet in January 2023 when it considered its final budget proposals for recommending to Full Council in February 2023.

Members were advised that the budget included a Council Tax levy increase of 3%, with this level of increase expected to be confirmed as part of the wider finance settlement announcements. No revenue support grant had been included in the budget for 2023/24 at this stage.

Once the final position for 2023/24 was determined, the remaining years of the 10-year forecast would be revised, set against the budget position for 2023/24 and would be reported to Members later in the budget setting process.

In addition to the above, the Portfolio Holder’s recommendations included an acceptance of Tendring District Council’s allocation of the Shared Prosperity Fund (including the Rural England Prosperity element) upon receiving Government sign-off of the submitted investment plan, along with a delegation to the Portfolio Holder for Business and Economic Growth to agree expenditure from that overall funding allocation.

In order to set out the latest financial position for the Council; respond to emerging issues in 2022/23 and also to develop the budget and long term forecast from 2023/24:-

It was moved by Councillor G V Guglielmi, seconded by Councillor Stock OBE and:-

RESOLVED that Cabinet:

a)     approves the updated Financial Forecast including a revised position for 2022/23 and proposed position for 2023/24, as set out in the Portfolio Holder’s report and its Appendices;

b)     requests the Resources and Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee’s comments on this latest financial forecast and proposed position for 2023/24; and

c)      accepts the funding made available to the Council as part of the Shared Prosperity Fund (including the Rural England Prosperity Fund element) and authorises the Portfolio Holder for Business and Economic Growth to agree any associated expenditure.