Andrew Charlwood

Governance, Audit, Risk Management and Standards Committee (GARMS)

Governance, Audit, Risk Management and Standards Committee (GARMS) - Monday 10th February, 2025 7.00 pm, NEW

The Governance Audit Risk Management and Standards Committee noted the contents of reports about the Treasury Management Strategy Statement (TMSS ) 2025/26 and the Treasury Management performance Update Q3 2024/25.

Licensing and General Purposes Committee CANCELLED

Licensing and General Purposes Committee - Monday 10th February, 2025 7.00 pm

This meeting has been cancelled.

Overview and Scrutiny Committee

Overview and Scrutiny Committee - Thursday 30th January, 2025 7.00 pm

The committee asked the Cabinet to consider the level of public concern about the Edgware growth area, including the lack of a definition of what a bus station is in the adopted Local Plan. The committee also asked the Cabinet to review a report on the Barnet Highway Network Task and Finish Group that recommends improvements to how roads in the borough are maintained.

Governance, Audit, Risk Management and Standards Committee (GARMS)

Governance, Audit, Risk Management and Standards Committee (GARMS) - Wednesday 29th January, 2025 7.00 pm, NEW

The committee noted the Quarterly Risks Report - Q3 202425 and the Grant Certification Report - GARMS Jan 25. The committee also noted the 202324 Interim Audit Findings Report and were assured by the new auditors that a disclaimed opinion would be issued for the 2023/24 accounts once the previous years were signed off by the previous auditors, and the issue relating to the legality of pre-payment of pension contributions was resolved. The committee then noted the Internal Audit Exception Recommendations Report and Q3 Progress Report 1 October 2024 to 31 December 2024 and the work programme, which was rearranged to accommodate the additional meeting in December 2024.

Overview and Scrutiny Committee

Budget Scrutiny, Overview and Scrutiny Committee - Thursday 12th December, 2024 7.00 pm

The committee considered a report on proposed changes to the Council Tax Support Scheme. It was noted that a separate public consultation was in progress, and the cabinet will consider the committee's views alongside the public consultation responses in February 2025. The committee recommended that the cabinet consider what other councils in London were doing. The committee also noted the Cabinet Forward Plan and considered a proposal to add the Open Door Homes acquisitions update to the plan for June 2025. There were no objections, so this was agreed. The committee noted the Overview and Scrutiny Committee Work Programme and agreed to move their meeting from 5 June to 12 June. They also agreed to consider the budget papers on 30 January to allow members to make comments ahead of the final budget being produced. Finally, the committee considered two reports on the council's budget: the Chief Finance Officer Report – 2024/25 Quarter 2 Financial Forecast and 2024/25 Budget Management and the Business Planning and Medium Term Financial Strategy 2025-2030. These reports revealed a challenging financial position for the council, with an anticipated overspend of £25 million for 2024/25. The committee recommended that the cabinet consider how the budget consultation might be improved in future years, potentially by adopting a themed approach where each department could be scrutinized separately.