Agenda item

The purpose of this report is to brief Members on the financial outturn of the Basingstoke Canal Authority.

Declarations of interest:

None

Officers:

Jane Lovett, Honorary Treasurer, Hampshire County Council

James Taylor, Strategic Manager, Basingstoke Canal

Key points raised during the discussion:

1.     The Honorary Treasurer introduced the report and provided members with a brief summary. It was highlighted that overall the current forecast showed that the Canal would need to make a draw from its reserves of £94,000 rather than the planned balanced budget. Members noted that the budget produced for 2020/21 suggested a draw on reserves of £36,000 which related to tree works which were being rescheduled from 2018/19. Members were pleased to hear of a £30,000 saving in the budget resulting from the good performance of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) fund which had led to past pension costs now being fully funded. They agreed to use the saving in the budget for the next three years to fund a part-time Canal Project Officer on a three-year fixed term contract. The position will be reviewed in three years’ time and hopefully the saving can at that point be permanently repurposed. Members noted that currently staff did not have the capacity to fully support the capital programme and the potential campsite scheme therefore the proposed post would help address the staffing aspect of the delays in delivering the capital programme. Officers concluded by stating that the overall finances of the Canal were currently acceptable but that it would become more strained going forward. There was ongoing work to find alternative sources of income which would be essential to relieve some of the pressure.

2. A representative from Fleet Town Council raised concerns that Surrey Heath Borough Council and Runnymede Borough Council were not contributing the full amount to the funding formula. The representative from Surrey Heath explained that this was a long standing issue and that there was an appetite at Surrey Heath Borough Council to support the Canal in the best way it could. It was stated that the upcoming General Election was restricting the amount of work being done but that it was likely a meeting to discuss the situation would take place with Surrey Heath Councillors in the new year.
3. In regards to A3/19 of the previous meeting, Members noted that the Leader of Surrey Heath Borough Council had not yet responded to an invitation to visit the Canal Centre. The Committee agreed to resend the invitation as an email and include Cllr Paul Deach and Cllr Sarah Jane Croke.
4. Members noted that Scotland Bridge car park had not been refurbished yet and had remained on the capital programme for some time. Officers informed the Committee that this was due to the lack of staff resource already noted, but highlighted that once the car park was operational there would be an opportunity to implement parking charges for its use as previous agreed. Officers noted that Runnymede Borough Council had offered to pay for parking meters to implement parking charges which would more than make up for the shortfall in their contribution.
5. Members also questioned whether Surrey County Council would be paying the rental income from the houseboats and canal cottages to the Canal Partnership in future. Richard Parkinson, Environment Delivery Group Manager, Surrey County Council, highlighted that, due to Surrey County Council’s financial situation, the income accumulated from the canal estate would likely only be allocated to the Canal Partnership to replace the County Council’s current contribution and not in addition to it. This way the Canal Partnership would have more control over how the canal estate generated income. Officers also noted that a decision was required as the matter had been outstanding for some time.  The Committee requested that confirmation be provided on this before the next meeting. Various members of the Committee expressed concern that Surrey County Council had no justification to receive the revenue that the Canal generated. The Chairman highlighted that the Canal relied on the goodwill of councils to contribute funding and that it was not a statutory duty.
6. Members of the committee stressed the importance of investing in incoming generating opportunities for the Canal.

Actions/ further information to be provided:

1. In regards to A3/19 of the previous meeting, Members noted that the Leader of Surrey Heath Borough Council had not yet responded to an invitation to visit the Canal Centre. The Committee agreed to resend the invitation as an email and include Cllr Paul Deach and Cllr Sarah Jane Croke.
2. Officers highlighted that the income accumulated from the canal estate in Surrey would likely not be paid to the Canal Partnership in addition to its existing funding but in place of it. The Committee requested that confirmation be provided on this before the next meeting.

Resolved:

The Basingstoke Canal Joint Management Committee:

1.     reviewed and agreed the revenue outturn forecast for the year 2019/20; and

2.     reviewed and agreed the revenue budget for 2020/21; and

3.     reviewed and agreed the proposed scheme of charges for 2020/21 set out in Appendix D.