Councillors and committees

Agenda item

Finance Update

To provide an update on the finance workstream, the financial principles to be used for the partnershipand set out the next steps for setting the Orbis Public Law shared budget.

Minutes:

Declarations of interest:

 

None

 

Witnesses:

 

Abraham Ghebre-Ghiorghis, Executive Lead Officer for Strategy, Governance and Law, Brighton and Hove City Council

 

Ann Charlton, Director of Legal, Democratic and Cultural Services, Surrey County Council.

 

Philip Baker, Assistant Chief Executive, East Sussex County Council

 

Tony Kershaw, Director of Law, Assurance and Strategy, West Sussex County Council

 

Marie Nickalls, Orbis Public Law Finance Lead, East Sussex County Council

 

Key points raised during the discussion:

 

1.    Members received an introduction to the report including details of how financial contributions to and savings from Orbis Public Law would be apportioned across the four constituent organisations. The Committee was advised that savings achieved would be divided according to the amount of money that each organisation committed to the partnership budget as well as factoring in the extent to which each of the partners utilised Orbis Public Law services. The savings achieved through the partnership would then be returned to each sovereign authority as opposed to being retained within the partnership.

2.    Members were further informed that budget contribution ratios by individual authorities could also be flexed in accordance with the amount that each council utilised Orbis Public Law. This would be reviewed annually. The Committee asked whether it would be possible to undertake an in year review of funding contribution ratios. Officers indicated that if use of Orbis Public Law services by an individual authority exceeded 10% of the agreed amount then this would trigger an automatic review of contribution ratios although measures would be put in place to avoid reaching this point. This would be enshrined within the Inter-Authority Agreement (IAA) which was in the process of being drafted. Officers were asked to bring the IAA to the next Joint Committee meeting for consideration.

3.    The Committee inquired as to how external legal services would be funded and were informed that it was proposed that these continued to be paid for by individual authorities. This was due to the fact that budgeting arrangements for external legal services was done differently across the four councils. The intention was, however, to create a single pool for external  legal services which would reduce costs for each authority. Members requested that officers draw up proposals on how external legal services could be paid for through the central Orbis Public Law budget for consideration by the Joint Committee.

4.    Members stressed that without concrete examples it was challenging to develop a picture of how the finances for Orbis Public Law would operate. Officers were therefore asked to provide clear examples of the partnership’s financial arrangements for the next finance update due to be considered by the Joint Committee.

 

Actions/ further information to be provided:

 

1.    An item on the Inter-Authority Agreement to be brought to the Orbis Public Law Joint Committee meeting in January 2017.

2.    Officers to model how funding external advocacy services through the central Orbis Public Law budget would operate.

3.    The next finance update for consideration by the Joint Committee should provide clear examples of the financial arrangements for Orbis Public Law.

 

RESOLVED; That the Orbis Public Law Joint Committee:

 

      i.        Note the report and key financial principles to be used for Orbis Public Law; and

 

     ii.        await a paper on 20 January 2017 to set out the joint Orbis Public Law budget which will be recommended for approval.

 

Supporting documents: