Agenda item

Report of the Head of Finance

Presented by the Corporate Portfolio Holder

Councillor N J Rushton presented the report to members, highlighting the proposed amendment regarding burial fees for children.  He explained that regardless of the amendment, this was an executive function rather than a Council function, and he had asked the Strategic Director of Place to review those fees with a view to removing them. 

 

Councillor N J Rushton drew members’ attention to the proposed freeze in Council Tax for the 10^th consecutive year providing an average saving of £5 in 2019/20 and over £286 overall.  He also highlighted the General Fund budget, set out at Appendix 3b, with a projected surplus for 2018/19 of £161,000, and the forecast level of self-sufficiency reserve of £4 million, assuming that there was no spending against this reserve.  He stated that it was prudent to maintain this reserve considering the risks to the budget going forward.  He added that the operating balance of £1.5 million remained in place.

 

Councillor N J Rushton highlighted the projected business rates income and the movement in the Council Tax base, as a result of significant growth in the district.

 

Councillor N J Rushton moved the recommendations as set out in the report.  The motion was seconded by Councillor R Blunt who reserved his comments. 

 

The Chairman referred to the amendments to the motion which had been circulated in the additional papers.  He invited Councillor S Sheahan to put forward his amendment.

 

Councillor S Sheahan spoke to the amendment.  He stated that investing start-up grants in local talent could bring enormous benefits to the local area.  He reminded members that the Council had agreed to support the Make a Stand campaign and the amendment sought a concrete commitment to provide a domestic abuse support worker.  He felt that additional funding was needed in relation to air quality as the action plan had not been updated.  He stated that the amendment sought to bring pride back to the local community and give artists a connection with the local area.  The proposed additional funding allocated towards the Citizens Advice Bureau would help with benefit claims and the investment in customer services would be recouped in efficiency savings over a period of time.  He explained that the proposed would be funded by a reduction in the CLT and ELT training budgets and LLEP match funding.  He felt this was a good use of money and commended the amended budget to members. 

 

The motion was seconded by Councillor N Clarke, who spoke in support of the motion, echoing the comments made by Councillor S Sheahan.

 

Councillor T J Pendleton commented that he could not support the amendment.  He added that in his capacity as Chairman of the Community Safety Partnership, priorities had been readdressed.  Domestic violence was a key priority and he felt that the additional support worker was not needed due to the network of support that was already in place. 

 

Councillor J Geary emphasised the importance of the Snibston mine site, which was a world heritage site.  He reported that a group of enthusiasts had met with officers and had decided to establish a heritage educational trust to administer the site.  He explained that one-off funding of £15,000 had been sought to help establish this group and he stated that he would be greatly disappointed if this was not possible.  He added that the work of the group would greatly enhance the town centre. 

 

Councillor R Blunt stated that he valued the Snibston site incredibly highly.  He reminded members of Leicestershire County Council’s proposals for the use of the site which the district council would support. 

 

Councillor J Legrys felt that improvements were required to customer services and investing additional funding into an improved interface between the public and the Council could only be of benefit to the Council and Council Tax payers..

 

Councillor D Harrison spoke in objection to the amendment.  

 

Councillor R D Bayliss referred members to the specific telephone line in respect of housing repairs and the dedicated officer for universal credit. 

 

Councillor N J Rushton exercised his right of reply and stated that the amendment would increase debt and reduce the self-sufficiency fund.  He highlighted the £130,000 which had already been invested in improving customer services this year and he was confident that the improvements would continue.  He urged members to reject the amendment. 

 

The Chairman then put the motion to the vote.  A recorded vote being required, the voting was as follows:

 

Amendment to the Budget submitted by Councillor S Sheahan (Amendment)
Councillor Ron Adams	For
Councillor Graham Allman	Against
Councillor Robert Ashman	Against
Councillor Roger Bayliss	Against
Councillor Richard Blunt	Against
Councillor Russell Boam	Against
Councillor John Bridges	Against
Councillor John Clarke	Against
Councillor Nick Clarke	For
Councillor John Cotterill	Against
Councillor John Coxon	Against
Councillor David Everitt	For
Councillor Dr Terri Eynon	For
Councillor John Geary	For
Councillor Louise Goacher	Against
Councillor Stuart Gillard	Against
Councillor Tony Gillard	Against
Councillor Dan Harrison	Against
Councillor Gill Hoult	Against
Councillor Jim Hoult	Against
Councillor Russell Johnson	For
Councillor Geraint Jones	Against
Councillor John Legrys	For
Councillor Susan McKendrick	For
Councillor Trevor Pendleton	Against
Councillor Virge Richichi	Against
Councillor Nicholas Rushton	Against
Councillor Tony Saffell	Against
Councillor Sean Sheahan	For
Councillor Nigel Smith	Against
Councillor Alison Smith MBE	Against
Councillor Michael Specht	Against
Councillor David Stevenson	Against
Councillor Michael Wyatt	Against
Rejected

 

The motion was declared LOST.

 

The Chairman invited Councillor M B Wyatt to put forward his amendment.

 

Councillor M B Wyatt spoke to the amendment and urged members to support proposals and deliver what local people and businesses wanted.  He stated that Coalville was failing and further declining and the administration’s budget had failed to address the real issues that impacted residents such as car parking charges.  He highlighted the proposals for free parking on market days, additional litter pickers and an increased budget for events in the town centre.  He also highlighted the proposals in respect of the Ivanhoe line and additional funds to tackle climate change

 

The motion was seconded by Councillor A C Saffell..

 

Councillor T Eynon thanked Councillor M B Wyatt for bringing forward his amendment and commented that it contained many important point, not least of which being the Ivanhoe line.  She added that although she was very much in support of reopening the line it was not possible to do so as a single district council with a budget of £20,000.  She emphasised the importance of working with businesses and acknowledged that nothing would happen without the support of the rail providers.  She stated that whilst she would be voting against the motion, this was not because she did not support the Ivanhoe line.  With regards to parking provision and town centre footfall, she commented that free parking was available on Sundays, however the majority of businesses were closed; the marking hall also closed before the free parking provision after 3.00pm.  She felt that businesses should take into consideration what was on offer.

 

Councillor S Sheahan commented that the amendment was focussed on Coalville.  He added that the Ivanhoe line was a matter for Leicestershire County Council.  He stated that he would not support the proposal to remove the current scheme of providing free parking after 3.00pm.

 

Councillor N J Rushton exercised his right of reply and urged members to vote against the amendment.

 

The Chairman then put the motion to the vote.  A recorded vote being required, the voting was as follows:

 

Amendment to the Budget submitted by Councillor M B Wyatt (Amendment)
Councillor Ron Adams	Against
Councillor Graham Allman	Against
Councillor Robert Ashman	Against
Councillor Roger Bayliss	Against
Councillor Richard Blunt	Against
Councillor Russell Boam	Against
Councillor John Bridges	Against
Councillor John Clarke	Against
Councillor Nick Clarke	Against
Councillor John Cotterill	Against
Councillor John Coxon	Against
Councillor David Everitt	Against
Councillor Dr Terri Eynon	Against
Councillor John Geary	Against
Councillor Louise Goacher	Against
Councillor Stuart Gillard	Against
Councillor Tony Gillard	Against
Councillor Dan Harrison	Against
Councillor Gill Hoult	Against
Councillor Jim Hoult	Against
Councillor Russell Johnson	Against
Councillor Geraint Jones	Against
Councillor John Legrys	Against
Councillor Susan McKendrick	Against
Councillor Trevor Pendleton	Against
Councillor Virge Richichi	Against
Councillor Nicholas Rushton	Against
Councillor Tony Saffell	Against
Councillor Sean Sheahan	Against
Councillor Nigel Smith	Against
Councillor Alison Smith MBE	Against
Councillor Michael Specht	Against
Councillor David Stevenson	Against
Councillor Michael Wyatt	For
Rejected

 

The motion was declared LOST.

 

 

The Chairman referred members to the substantive motion as set out in the agenda. 

 

Councillor T Eynon expressed her continuing concerns regarding the funding of the leisure project. 

 

Councillor M Specht referred to the accomplishments made in respect of building new council houses and improving the housing stock. 

 

Councillor R D Bayliss invited members to support the budget which would enable the Council to spend £4.2 million in the coming year to keep homes decent and £4.9 million on building new homes.  He referred to the 400 air source heat pumps which had been installed in houses with no access to mains gas.  He highlighted the increase in the aids and adaptations budget He referred members in particular to recommendation 15 and reminded members that provision had been made to redeem the £13 million loan commitments which became due for repayment in 2022; thereafter a decision would be taken annually on how to utilise any predicted surplus. 

 

Councillor J Legrys stated that he could not vote for the budget in principle and he did not have the opportunity to debate each recommendation in detail.  He added that there were no reassurances regarding the cost of the leisure centre.  He thanked the officers who had advised the Labour Group on the budget process and for the insight they had provided into the budget process.  He did not feel that enough homes were being built in Coalville to cater for residents.  He reiterated that there were parts of the budget that he did not agree with and he disliked the principle of voting for the recommendations en bloc. 

 

Councillor S Sheahan stated that the budget was uncertain in the medium term and uninspiring in the short term. 

 

Councillor R Blunt stated that he was proud that the Council had frozen Council Tax for the last 10 years, that businesses growth had been delivered and that new homes were being built. 

 

Councillor N J Rushton exercised his right of reply, highlighting that new council houses were being built, council tax had been frozen for 10 years, there was massive growth in the district and £25 million was being spent on leisure.  He recommended the budget to members.

 

Councillor A C Saffell reported that in the past year there had been a reduction in agency staffing numbers.  He thanked the Leader and everyone involved.

 

The Chairman then put the substantive motion to the vote.  A recorded vote being required, the voting was as follows:

 

Substantive motion (Motion)
Councillor Ron Adams	Against
Councillor Graham Allman	For
Councillor Robert Ashman	For
Councillor Roger Bayliss	For
Councillor Richard Blunt	For
Councillor Russell Boam	For
Councillor John Bridges	For
Councillor John Clarke	For
Councillor Nick Clarke	Against
Councillor John Cotterill	For
Councillor John Coxon	For
Councillor David Everitt	Against
Councillor Dr Terri Eynon	Against
Councillor John Geary	Against
Councillor Louise Goacher	For
Councillor Stuart Gillard	For
Councillor Tony Gillard	For
Councillor Dan Harrison	For
Councillor Gill Hoult	For
Councillor Jim Hoult	For
Councillor Russell Johnson	Against
Councillor Geraint Jones	For
Councillor John Legrys	Against
Councillor Susan McKendrick	Abstain
Councillor Trevor Pendleton	For
Councillor Virge Richichi	For
Councillor Nicholas Rushton	For
Councillor Tony Saffell	For
Councillor Sean Sheahan	Against
Councillor Nigel Smith	For
Councillor Alison Smith MBE	For
Councillor Michael Specht	For
Councillor David Stevenson	For
Councillor Michael Wyatt	For
Carried

 

The motion was declared CARRIED.

 

It was therefore

 

RESOLVED THAT:

 

1.      The Medium Term Financial Strategy approved by Cabinet on 5 February 2019 be noted.

 

2.      The S151 Officer’s comments on the robustness of the estimates and adequacy of reserves be noted.

 

3.      The General Fund Revenue Budget for 2019/20 be approved.

 

4.      The Special Expenses Revenue Budget for 2019/20 be approved.

 

5.      The district Council Tax be frozen in 2019/20.

 

6.      The transfer of any surplus income over expenditure in 2019/20 to the self sufficiency reserve be approved (currently budgeted as £161,090).

 

7.      The decrease in council house rents for 2019/20 by 1% be approved.

 

8.      The increase of 3.3% in garage rents for 2019/20 be approved.

 

9.      Central heating charges for 2019/20 remaining at the same level as for 2018/19 be approved.

 

10.   The average increase of 8.07% in service charge for 2019/20 be approved.

 

11.   The ground rent increase at Appleby Magna Caravan Site of 3.3% on the anniversary of each individual rent agreement in 2019/20 be approved.

 

12.   Increasing the Lifeline charges for East Midlands Housing and private customers by 3.3% be approved.

 

13.   Increasing shop lease rents by an average of 14% to gradually move them to market levels be approved. This approach was agreed by Cabinet in November 2014.

 

14.   The transfer of any surplus Housing Revenue Account income over expenditure in 2019/20 into the loan redemption reserve be approved in order to repay the 2022 loan commitments.

 

15.   The proposal that surplus Housing Revenue Account income is not automatically transferred to the loan redemption reserve once the 2022 loan commitments can be repaid be noted as detailed in the report on the Treasury Management Strategy Statement on the agenda for this meeting.

 

16.   The proposed General Fund, Special Expenses and Housing Revenue Account Capital Programmes for 2019/20 and planned financing be approved.

 

17.   The vehicle replacement programme for 2020/21 be approved.

 

18.   The Capital Programmes 2020/21 – 2023/24 be approved for indicative purposes only.

 

19.   The 2019/20 Capital Strategy be approved (in line with the prudential code).

 

20.   The following amounts be approved for the year 2019/20 in accordance with Section 31b of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 (as amended):

 

(1)     33,678 being the amount calculated by the Council, in accordance with Regulation 3 of the Local Authorities (Calculation of Council Tax Base) (England) Regulations 2012, as its Council Tax Base for the year.

 

(2)   the amounts specified in Appendix 6 table a of this report being the amounts calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 34 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, as the amounts of its Council Tax Base for the year for dwellings in those parts of its area to which one or more special items relate.

 

21.   The following amounts be now calculated by the Council for the year 2019/20 in accordance with Sections 31a and 31b of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 as amended:

 

(1)    district / parish gross expenditure

        £61,443,679 being the aggregate of the amounts which the Council         estimates for the items set out in Section 31a (2) of the Act.

 

(2)    income

               £53,519,082 being the aggregate of the amounts which the Council estimates for the items set out in Section 31a (3) of the Act.

 

(3)    district / parish net expenditure

               £7,924,597 being the amount by which the aggregate at 20(1) above exceeds the aggregate at 20(2) above, calculated by the Council in accordance with Section 31a (4) of      the Act as its Council Tax requirement for the year.        

 

(4)    basic amount of tax (including average parish precepts)

               £235.30 being the amount at 21(3) above, divided by the amount stated as the Council Tax Base in parts of the Council’s area, calculated by the Council in accordance with Section 31 b of the Act as the basic amount of its Council Tax for the year.

 

(5)    parish precepts/special expenses

               £2,583,940 being the aggregate amount of all special items referred to in Section 35(1) of the Act.

 

(6)    basic amount of tax (basic Council Tax – district)

 £158.58 being the amount at 21(4) above less the result given by dividing the amount at 21(5) above by the amount as stated as the Council Tax Base for the whole of the Council area, calculated by the Council in accordance with Section 34(2) of the Act, as the basic amount of its Council Tax for dwellings in those parts of its area to which no special item relates.

 

(7)    basic amount of tax (parished areas)

               The amounts listed in column 5 of table b appendix 6to this report, being            the amounts given by adding to the amount at 21(6) above, the amounts          of the special item or items     relating to dwellings in those parts of the    Council’s area mentioned, divided in each    case by the amount stated as            the Council Tax Base in parts of the Council area, calculated by the     Council in accordance with Section 34(3) of the Act as the basic amounts         of its Council Tax for the year for dwellings in those parts of its area to                which one or more special items relate.

 

(8)    district /parish Council Tax rates

               The amounts set outin table c appendix 6 to this report being the            amounts given by multiplying the amounts at 21(6) and 21(7) above by            the number which, in the proportion set out in Section 5(1) of the Act, is       applicable to dwellings listed in a particular valuation band divided by the                number which in that proportion is applicable to dwellings listed in            valuation band D, calculated by the Council in accordance with Section           36(1) of the Act as the amounts to be taken into account for the year in            respect of categories of dwelling listed in different valuation bands.

 

22.   Major precepting authorities

It be noted that the amounts set out in table D appendix 6 to this report are the amounts notified by Leicestershire County Council, Leicestershire Police and Crime Commissioner and the Combined Fire Authority in accordance with Section 40 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 as their precepts for 2019/20 for each of the categories of dwellings listed.

 

23.  Council Tax rates – all bands

      Having calculated the aggregate in each case of the amounts at21(8) (table C appendix 6) and 22 (table D appendix 6)above, the Council in accordance with Section 30(2) of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 hereby sets the amounts of Council Tax for the Council’s area for the year 2019/20 for each of the categories of dwellings as shown in table E appendix 6. 

 

24.  Referendums relating to Council Tax increases

      It be noted that the relevant basic amount of Council Tax for 2019/20 is not     excessive.