Issue - meetings

RESOLVED:

1.    That Cabinet note the 2023/24 Draft Budget and Medium-Term Financial Strategy to 2027/28, including progress to date in setting out spending pressures and efficiencies, as set out in Annex A.

2.    That Cabinet note the provisional budget gap of £14.4m for 2023/24 and the next steps required to close the gap.

3.    That Cabinet note the proposed Capital Programme for 2023/24 to 2027/28 of £1.9bn set out in Section 6 and Annex B

4.    That Cabinet note the Executive Summary of Resident Engagement and next steps set out in Section 9.

Reasons for Decisions:

In January 2023, Cabinet will be asked to recommend a Final Budget for 2023/24 to full Council for approval in February. The draft budget sets out proposals to direct available resources to support the achievement of the Council’s corporate priorities, balanced against a challenging financial environment, giving Cabinet the opportunity to comment on the proposals and next steps.

The draft budget also provides an update on the continuing transformational programme, including identified cross cutting opportunities which are required to ensure that the Council can continue prioritising outcomes for residents, while managing growing demand for services and safeguarding future financial resilience and sustainability.

(The decisions on this item can be called-in by the Resources and Performance Select Committee)

The report was introduce by the Leader who explained that the County council was required to produce a balanced budget in advance of each financial year. The Final Budget for 2023/24 would be approved by Cabinet in January 2023 and full council in February 2023. The financial settlement from Government was expected on 21 December 2022. The council had worked hard over recent years to improve its financial resilience and the financial management capabilities across the organisation. This had strengthened the council’s position, compared to where it was in 2018. Through hard work and diligent financial management, the council had built a stronger financial base from which to deliver services. The cost of living crisis, global financial uncertainty and government policy changes had meant some severe challenges to the council’s financial position. It was explained that there remained a provisional budget gap for 2023/24 of £14.4m, driven primarily by significant inflation, policy changes and ongoing demand pressures within priority services. The draft budget assumed an increase of council tax by 1.99% and although the Chancellor had allowed for council tax to be increased by 5% without a referendum there was no expectation the authority would be doing this. The Leader encouraged residents to participate in the draft budget survey which was available for completing via the Surrey Says website.

The Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources echoed the comments made by the Leader explaining that a number of efficiencies had been identified across the authority and that the council was facing significant pressures due to inflation. Although adult social care charging reforms had been pushed back, this would be a significant pressure once introduced.

RESOLVED:

1.    That Cabinet note the 2023/24 Draft Budget and Medium-Term Financial Strategy to 2027/28, including progress to date in setting out spending pressures and efficiencies, as set out in Annex A.

2.    That Cabinet note the provisional budget gap of £14.4m for 2023/24 and the next steps required to close the gap.

3.    That Cabinet note the proposed Capital Programme for 2023/24 to 2027/28 of £1.9bn set out in Section 6 and Annex B

4.    That Cabinet note the Executive Summary of Resident Engagement and next steps set out in Section 9.

Reasons for Decisions:

In January 2023, Cabinet will be asked to recommend a Final Budget for 2023/24 to full Council for approval in February. The draft budget sets out proposals to direct available resources to support the achievement of the Council’s corporate priorities, balanced against a challenging financial environment, giving Cabinet the opportunity to comment on the proposals and next steps.

The draft budget also provides an update on the continuing transformational programme, including identified cross cutting opportunities which are required to ensure that the Council can continue prioritising outcomes for residents, while managing growing demand for services and safeguarding future financial resilience and sustainability.

(The decisions on this item can be called-in by the Resources and Performance Select Committee)