Agenda item

To consider the recommendations from the Corporate Policy Committee.

Note: The appendices for the Medium-Term Financial Strategy report have been circulated as a separate document to all members of the Council. Members are asked to bring these to the meeting and use this version of the documents when the item is considered at the meeting.

The Corporate Policy Committee, at its meeting on 10 February 2022, had considered a report on the Medium-Term Financial Strategy for Cheshire East Council for 2022-26.

The Corporate Policy Committee had recommended to Council the items in Appendix A to the report, subject to the two following recommendations:

a.    the Highways and Transport Committee be asked to carry out an immediate and major review of the local and national funding of expenditure of Cheshire East Highways, and that this leads to decisions or recommendations to enhance services and value for money to local residents; and

b.    the Capital Programme, on page 218 of the MTFS agenda pack, be amended to provide the Managing and Maintaining Highways expenditure is increased to £6m in each of 2023/24 and 2024/25 instead of £4m in each year.  To balance this amendment, the borrowing costs be funded from correlated savings over the three-year period, achieved from the revenue budget allocated to pot holes repairs.

The recommendations were proposed and seconded, and during the debate an amendment was proposed.

Amendment

To include an item in the Capital Programme, on Page 218 of the MTFS agenda pack, for B5077/B5078 North Junction, Alsager. The cost is £400,000 fully funded from External Contributions.

The amendment was moved and seconded.  The mover and seconder of the recommendations from Corporate Policy Committee to Council agreed to accept the amendment and therefore the amendment became part of the substantive proposition.

Following debate on the substantive recommendations, these were put to the vote, and in accordance with legislation, a recorded vote was carried out with the following results:

FOR

Councillors Q Abel, S Akers Smith, L Anderson, J Barber, L Braithwaite, J Bratherton, S Brookfield, C Browne, C Bulman, B Burkhill, P Butterill, S Carter, S Corcoran, L Crane, D Edwardes, B Evans, H Faddes, A Farrell, K Flavell, R Fletcher, M Goldsmith, S Handley, A Harewood, S Hogben, M Houston, D Jefferay, L Jeuda, I Macfarlane, N Mannion, A Moran, R Moreton, D Muprhy, C Naismith, J Nicholas, J Parry, B Puddicombe, J Rhodes, J Smith, A Stott, M Warren and P Williams.

AGAINST

Councillors M Asquith, R Bailey, M Beanland, M Benson, D Brown, J Clowes, S Davies, T Dean, S Edgar, JP Findlow, A Gage, S Gardiner, L Gilbert, A Gregory, P Groves, G Hayes, S Holland, A Kolker, C Leach, K Parkinson, P Redstone, J Saunders, M Sewart, M Simon, L Smetham, D Stockton, L Wardlaw, J Weathertill and N Wylie.

NOT VOTING

Councillor D Marren, A Martin, B Murphy, S Pochin and L Roberts.

The motion was declared carried with 41 votes for, 29 against and 5 not voting.

RESOLVED: 

That Council

1          notes the Report of the Council’s Chief Finance Officer (Section 151 Officer), contained within the MTFS Report, regarding the robustness of estimates and level of reserves held by the Council based on these budget proposals (Appendix C to the report, Report from the Section 151 Officer).

That Council, having given due regard to the report of the Chief Finance Officer, approves:

2          the Revenue estimates for the 2022/23 budget and the medium-term Capital Programme estimates 2022-2026, as detailed in the Medium-Term Financial Strategy Report (MTFS) 2022-2026 (Appendix C to the report).

3          Band D Council Tax of £1,626.24 representing an increase of 2.99%. This is below the referendum limit (including 1% ringfenced for Adult Social Care) and arises from the provisional finance settlement (Appendix C to the report, Section 2).

4          the 2022/23 non ringfenced Specific Grants, and that any amendments to particular grants will be reported to Council if further information is received from Government Departments or other funding bodies (Appendix C to the report , Annex 7).

5          the 2022/23 Capital Grants, and that any amendments to particular grants will be reported to Council if further information is received from Government Departments or other funding bodies (Appendix C to the report, Annex 8).

6          the relevant Committee to agree the use of additional Specific Grants received as further updates to the 2022/23 funding position are received.

7          the Prudential Indicators for Capital Financing (Appendix C to the report, Annex 10).

8          the Children and Families Committee to agree any necessary amendment to the 2022/23 Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) of £338.5m and the associated policy proposals, in the light of further information received from DfE, pupil number changes, further academy transfers and the actual balance brought forward from 2021/22 (Appendix C to the report, Annex 7). 

9          the Capital Strategy (Appendix C to the report, Annex 10).

10        the Treasury Management Strategy (Appendix C to the report, Annex 11).

11        the Investment Strategy; including the financial limits for various classifications of investment, and the investment decision making process set out in the Strategy (Appendix C to the report, Annex 12)

12        the Reserves Strategy (Appendix C to the report, Annex 13), which includes proposed movements to and from reserves.

13        the amendment to Key Decisions as defined in the Constitution and the financial limits to be included within the Council’s Finance Procedure Rules (Appendix C to the report, Annex 14);

14        the Highways and Transport Committee be asked to carry out an immediate and major review of the local and national funding of expenditure of Cheshire East Highways, and that this leads to decisions or recommendations to enhance services and value for money to local residents;

15        the Capital Programme, on page 218 of the MTFS agenda pack, be amended to provide the Managing and Maintaining Highways expenditure is increased to £6m in each of 2023/24 and 2024/25 instead of £4m in each year.  To balance this amendment, the borrowing costs be funded from correlated savings over the three-year period, achieved from the revenue budget allocated to pot holes repairs.

16        the Capital Programme, on page 218 of the MTFS agenda pack, include provision for B5077/B5078 North Junction, Alsager. The cost is £400,000 fully funded from External Contributions.

 That Council recognises that Corporate Policy Committee noted:

17        the year-end outturn forecast position for 2021/22 (Appendix C to the report, Section 2).

17        the Budget Engagement exercise undertaken by the Council, as set out in the attached (Appendix C to the report, Annex 2a). 

18        the results of the Budget Consultation (Appendix C to the report, Annex 2b).