There were no apologies for absence.

There were no disclosures of interest.

The minutes of the meeting held on 26 November 2013 to be submitted and signed.  (All minutes are available on the Council’s website.)

The minutes of the meeting held on 26 November 2013 were submitted and signed.

Report of Senior Accountant, Finance Shared Services

This report informs the Budget Panel of the reported budgetary variances at the end of November 2013 (Period 8).

The Panel received a report of the Senior Accountant, which included the latest edition of the Finance Digest. 

The Chair, Councillor Dhindsa, referred to the variance analysis for waste and recycling.  He asked why the overspend had been allowed to reach this level.

The Shared Director of Finance explained that the £68,000 overspend had been reported in period 8 but actually related to a period prior to the transfer to Veolia.  Agency staff or overtime had been used to cover for staff absences.  She acknowledged that the information should have been reported in the Finance Digest earlier in the year.  She added that waste and recycling had transferred from one department to another.

In response to a question from Councillor Martins about the variance for the ICT service, the Shared Director of Finance advised that detailed works on the budget had taken place since the transfer and some budgets had not been allocated correctly.  It also covered the additional work required to meet the Public Services Network requirements.  She informed Members that the Council was compliant.

The Head of Finance Shared Services responded to a question from Councillor Derbyshire about the underspend in Strategic Finance.  He advised that the majority of the underspend related to Revenues and Benefits Client costs. 

Councillor Taylor noted the comments in Table 4 within the Finance Digest and the reference to the Council being below the business rates baseline.  He asked for further clarification.

The Shared Director of Finance reminded the Panel about the Business Rates Retention Scheme.  The Government had set a baseline figure for Watford. If the Council collected above the baseline it would keep a proportion of the income, however if it collected below the baseline it would lose some of its funding.  She advised that there was a safety net of 7.5% and if the Council collected less than the safety net it would be compensated up to the safety net level.  The Shared Director of Finance informed the Panel the those businesses located in The Parade had been awarded a 15% reduction in their business rates for a limited period due to the current Town Centre works.  The Council had contacted the Valuation Office to advise that some of the works had been completed and some businesses were no longer affected by the works.  Officers would wait to see if the Valuation Office would further review the reductions.

In response to a question from Councillor Turmaine, the Shared Director of Finance explained that Buildings and Projects’ budget had been reduced due to the outsourcing to Veolia, however, the Head of Service had since advised that the funding may need to be restored to the pre-outsourcing levels. 

The Head of Finance Shared Services informed the Panel that the faces and bells in the tables were produced based on a comparison of the forecast and the current budget.

Councillor Turmaine noted that in Table 4 Revenues and Benefits had a forecast variance in Period 8 of £213,000.  He asked for an explanation.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 37.

The Panel is requested to consider the Cabinet report and provide any observations to enable Cabinet to make its decisions.

The Cabinet report has been circulated separately.

The Panel received a report from Finance Shared Services.  It was noted that the report would be presented to Cabinet at its meeting on 20 January 2014.

The Shared Director of Finance highlighted some of the key features for Budget Panel to note.  She advised that the Council was proposing a Council Tax freeze and would therefore receive the Council Tax Freeze Grant.  Since the publication of the report, officers had been informed that the grant would be 1% which was approximately £83,000.  It was proposed that there would be no change to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme.  Appendix 1 to the report set out details of the proposed £754,970 Revenue savings submitted by services.  Appendix 2 provided information about the £139,820 proposed growth bids.

The Shared Director of Finance informed the Panel that its comments at the last meeting regarding the increased cost of the Controlled Parking Zone, had been reported in paragraph 6.2 of the report to Cabinet.

Appendix 1 – 2014/15 Revenue Estimates

The Head of Finance Shared Services circulated an addendum to Appendix 1.  The changes were to a cost centre description and the wording of a reason.  He advised that there had been no changes to the figures.

The Shared Director of Finance stated that the budget was not proposing any significant changes for the Council and there were no large scale redundancies.

Following a question from the Chair about the reference to the deletion of the Project Officer post in Regeneration and Development, the Head of Finance Shared Services advised that he was unsure of the details but would circulate the information to the Panel.

The Chair asked officers to explain the implications if the Council was minded to increase Council Tax by 1%.  He also asked what percentage increase would mean that a referendum had to be held.

The Shared Director of Finance explained that local authorities were only eligible for the Council Tax Freeze Grant if there was no increase in Council Tax.  Even an increase of 1p would mean that the grant would not be awarded.  The Department for Communities and Local Government had not yet confirmed the details about referendum limits.  It was anticipated that the level maybe set at 1% or 1.5%.  A final decision was expected in early February.

Councillor Counter referred to paragraph 4.1 in the report, in particular the Road Map.  She said the results were very impressive and she asked that all staff and Heads of Service be congratulated on their work throughout this time.  Due to this work the Council had not been required to make major cuts to services.

The Chair said that he accepted the Councillors comments but added that over the years services had been lost or privatised.  He noted that funding for the Women’s Centre would cease from April 2014.  He considered there to have been cuts to the anti social behaviour budget.  He felt it was incorrect to say that there had been no cuts.  The Council had privatised  ...  view the full minutes text for item 38.

·               Wednesday 26 February 2014  

·               Wednesday 26 February 2014