Purpose of the
item:To agree the minutes of the
Resources and Performance Select Committee held on 18 October 2023
as a true and accurate record of proceedings.
The
minutes of the Resources and Performance Select Committee held on
18 October 2023 were formally agreed as a true and accurate record
of the meeting.
40/21
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
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Purpose of the
item:All Members present are required to
declare, at this point in the meeting or as soon as possible
thereafter:
I.Any disclosable pecuniary interests
and/or
II.Other interests arising under the Code of Conduct in
respect of any item(s) of business being considered at this
meeting.
NOTES:
·Members are reminded that they must not participate
in any item where they have a disclosable pecuniary
interest.
·As well as an interest of the Member, this includes
any interest, of which the Member is aware, that relates to the
Member’s spouse or civil partner (or any person with whom the
Member is living as a spouse or civil partner).
·Members with a significant personal interest may
participate in the discussion and vote on that matter unless that
interest could be reasonably regarded as prejudicial.
The
Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources provided a brief
introduction to the 2024/25 Draft Budget and the 2028/29
Medium-Term Financial Strategy (MTFS), highlighting that the
Council continues to work in a challenging financial climate
specifically in relation to the high inflation environment and
continued demand and price pressures on key services.
A
Member questioned what uplifts to fees and charges were proposed
across Customer and Communities services and how this reflected
feedback in the public consultation. The Strategic Finance Business
Partner (Resources, C&C, and CPAE) advised that the assumption
was that the average increase would be 4%. The widespread
assumption is taxpayers should not subsidise the use of
discretionary services. The Cabinet Member for Customer and
Communities Decisions added that registration services were looking
to generate £4 million in income this year for the first
time, which highlighted that the popularity and standard of service
delivered was increasing. The Cabinet Member also underlined a gap
between the market rate and the actual charges registration makes,
which are benchmarked and reviewed annually to make sure they are
affordable, but it should also be recognised that when the rates
being charged are less than the market rates there is an
opportunity to increase rates and therefore income.
Tim Hall arrived at 10.23 am.
The
Chairman questioned if any of the accessibility would be
compromised because of the uplifts to fees and charges, such as
with digitally excluded people. The Cabinet Member for Customer and
Communities Decisions assured the Chairman that uplifts tended to
apply to discretionary services, and fees for statutory services
would be maintained at an affordable level. The Head of Customer
Services highlighted that accessibility is fundamental to all their
services, which is why they had protected telephone services for
those who cannot access online.
Regarding assumptions made on inflation in the short and medium
term, a member questioned what criteria were considered. The
Strategic Finance Business Partner (corporate) explained that the
corporate assumption for inflation in the Draft Budget was 5% for
2024/25, the default rate was only used in the absence of any other
market intelligence or rates specifically built into contract terms
and conditions. Inflation was currently running at around 4.6% as
...
view the full minutes text for item 42/21
Purpose of the
item:For the Select Committee to review
the attached Forward Work Programme and Recommendation Tracker,
making suggestions for additions or amendments as
appropriate.
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