Purpose

 
The
July Finance review comprises a number of separate reports, which
combined provide an overview of the council’s recent, current
and future financial positon.
 
These reports are;

July Finance Review cover report
The 2023/24 Financial Outturn
report
Q1 2024/25 Budget Monitoring
report
Medium Term Financial Strategy report,
which will include

Decision to approve capital projects
Approval to delegate permission to enter into prudential
borrowing
The
latest Treasury Management Strategy Statements

Decision

 
Decision
 
For the reasons set
out in the report and its appendices Cabinet RESOLVED to Agree:
 
i) 
To note the Council’s challenging current financial
situation, as set out in the portfolio lead member’s
introduction, appendices A, B, and C.
ii) 
To proceed with the limited number of new business critical and
priority capital projects as detailed in report B.
iii) 
To proceed with a public consultation in the autumn, setting out
the Council’s position and seeking views on which services
should be prioritised to inform political decision making.
iv) 
To note the Council’s zero based budgeting work in the form
of the outcomes based value for money review to be presented back
to Cabinet in the Autumn of 2024/25.
v) 
To delegate to the Corporate Director of Resources to enter up to
£390m of long term borrowing, as necessary up to February
2025, to finance the existing capital programme across the General
Fund and the Housing Revenue Account.
 
Alternatives
Considered
 
a) 
Failure to face up to the budget challenge in the hope that things
get better could mean the council faces very difficult decisions to
be made in a short space of time in the run up to budget setting in
February 2025.