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Cabinet resolved to recommend the
Assembly to:
 
(i)  Agree that the basic
amount of Council Tax (Band D equivalent) shall increase by 2.99%,
and by a further 2% for the Adult Social Care precept, bringing the
total increase to 4.99%;
 
(ii)  Agree that the
Council Tax to be set for 2025/26 shall be £1,607.76 for a
Band D property, an annual increase of £76.41;
 
(iii)  Note that the Council
shall levy an additional £490.38 on the Band D amount above
on behalf of the Greater London Authority, which represented an
increase of 4.03%;
 
(iv)  Note the amount of
58,146.80 as the Council Tax Base for Barking and Dagenham for
2025/26, an increase of 3,230.26 on the previous year, in
accordance with Regulation 3 of the Local Authorities (Calculation
of Council Tax Base) Regulations 1992 made under the Local
Government Finance Act 1992 (as amended);
 
(v)  Agree, in setting the
Council’s General Fund revenue budget, to set the Council Tax
requirement at £93.486m for 2025/26;
 
(vi)  Agree that, in accordance
with provisions of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023, the
100% premium on long-term (over one year) empty homes be
implemented from 1 April 2025 and a 100% premium on second homes be
implemented from 1 April 2026, as detailed in section 11 of the
report;
 
(vii)  Consider and have due regard to
budget consultation feedback with residents and businesses as set
out in Section 21 of the report and note that no changes were
recommended as a result;
 
(viii)  Agree the Statutory Budget
Determination for 2025/26 as set out at Appendix D to the
report;
 
(ix)  Approve the proposed
General Fund Revenue Budget for 2025/26 as set out in Appendix A to
the report;
 
(x)  Agree the new savings and
growth proposals as set out in Appendix B to the report;
 
(xi)  Approve the latest General
Fund Medium Term Financial Strategy 2025/26 to 2027/28 as set out
in section 4 and Appendix A to the report;
 
(xii)  Note that the proposals to
maintain a General Fund balance of £12m in line with the
Council’s approved Reserves Policy (July 2023);
 
(xiii)  Note the projected reserve balances at
31 March 2026 as set out in Section 20 of the report;
 
(xiv)  Approve the Council’s
provisional Capital Programme, including Investment and Acquisition
Strategy (IAS) schemes, for 2025/26 to 2027/28 as detailed section
18 and Appendix G to the report;
 
(xv)  Agree to set a Capital Budget
for 2025/26 at £168.437m, as detailed in Appendix G to the
report;
 
(xvi)  Approve the Strategy for the Flexible
Use of Capital Receipts at Appendix I to the report, in line with
the regulatory requirements to facilitate the delivery of
efficiency savings including capitalisation of redundancy costs;
and
 
(xvii)  Note the Chief Financial Officer’s
Statutory Finance Report (Section 25 Statement) as set out in
Appendix H and, in particular, their determination of
“the robustness of the estimates made for the purposes of the
calculations, and the adequacy of the proposed financial
reserves”.
 
(xviii) 
Note the savings proposals which came forward from the Finance
Challenge sessions which are not being taken forward, as detailed
in Section 21 of the report.