Issue - meetings

To consider to consider the current financial position for the revenue budget 2013/14- 2015/16 and to set the Council Tax for 2013/14.

(Revised Council Tax appendices attached following receipt of information from major precepting authorities)

(All Wards)

Officers introduced a report which proposed a budget to be considered by the Council and a proposed level at which the coming year’s Council Tax was to be set. The Council was once again reminded that the information in respect of formula funding from central Government had been received very late this year and adjustments had had to be made up until a short time before this meeting to take account of various factors of which the Council had been notified in recent days.

The overall level of funding from central Government was considerably lower than several years previously and the cumulative decrease in funding was expected to total 43% by 2015/16. Savings continued to be achieved through shared services and transformation and bids for revenue had been kept to a bare minimum this year; these were to be paid for from balances. In order to address the shortfall arising from the ending of Council Tax Benefit the Council had reviewed the levels of discount applied to certain prescribed levels of Council Tax Discounts and these were set out in full within amended recommendations tabled before the Committee.

The Leader thanked Finance Officers and Officers of the Council more generally for their response to the difficult circumstances in which they were working. The Committee was informed that the response to a letter of appeal to the Government over the  level of formula funding had been a further small reduction in funding.

Members discussed the various means through which the Council had sought to save money in recent years, including the creation of a single management team, the closure of the REDI Centre and the passing of the Countryside Centre to outside management. It was noted that these changes had enabled the Council to retain a reasonable financial position. However, further incremental cuts were seen as inevitably leading to future threats to frontline services and staffing. The items over which there was most discussion were the provision of free swimming for under 16s and over 60s and pre-9.30am concessionary bus travel. It was suggested that it was imprudent to be pursuing such policies in times of financial hardship, however it was pointed out that these had been funded from savings to the budget agreed for the 2012/13 financial year and had placed no additional stress on the Council’s finances.

RECOMMENDED that

to enable Members to approve the budget for 2013/14, 2014/15 & 2015/16:

1)         the Council determines the level of Council Tax discount to be applied to the prescribed classes of dwellings as defined by the Council Tax (Prescribed Classes of Dwellings) (England) Regulations 2003 (as amended) for

a)     Class A [ “second homes with planning restriction”] be set at 0% - no discount

b)     Class B [“second homes without planning restriction”] be set at 0% - no discount

c)     Class C [vacant dwellings] be set at:

a.      Where the dwelling appears in the Valuation List for the first time and it has been continuously unoccupied and substantially unfurnished since  ...  view the full minutes text for item 161