No apologies had been received.

There were no disclosures of interest.

The minutes of the meeting held on 21 November 2023 to be submitted and signed.

The minutes of the meeting of Finance Scrutiny Committee held on 21 November 2023 were signed.

Report of the Chief Finance Officer

The Chief Finance Officer (CFO) delivered her report to the committee. 

The Chair thanked the Chief Finance Officer and invited questions from the committee.  There were no questions.   

RESOLVED –

1.           that the Financial Monitoring Report 2023/24 – Period 8, the revenue and capital forecasts for 2023/24 be noted.

2.           that the virement requests to Council as set out in Appendix 7 be noted.

3.           that there are no recommendations to Cabinet or Council.

Report of the Chief Finance Officer

The committee received the report of the Chief Finance Officer (CFO).  Following this, the Chair reminded the committee of the various recommendations contained within the report. 

The officer then responded to questions on the following issues from the committee members and other members in attendance:

·        A question was asked whether the general fund balance and Economic Impact Reserve would be sufficient now that it was to drop below £2 million; it was noted that a £1 million redundancy fund was to be set up.  The CFO explained that (as set out in her report) the overspend for 2023-24, due to the Veolia contract, two years of high inflation, the staff pay award and increases in temporary housing, all meant that the remainder of the Economic Impact Reserve would need to be used.  These inflationary pressures had been built into the future budget. 

·        The CFO stressed that plans were in place to top the general fund reserve back up to £2 million. 

·        There was a discussion around various savings that were planned, such as service redesign over the next three years.  The CFO reassured the committee that there was a high level of confidence that for 2024-25 it was understood where the necessary savings were to come from and there was a Budget Delivery Group set up to ensure this. 

·        The CFO stressed that the current level of spending that was built into the Capital Programme was affordable within the current budget setting.  However, if interest rates did not fall as expected, then there would need to be decisions made about the affordability of the Capital Programme.

·        The Portfolio Holder stressed that there was a clear methodology to the approach of the service redesign. 

·        Woodside Sports Village was mentioned as a significant cost and due to the need to protect the revenue budget, delivery of this project was proposed to be delayed. 

·        Concern was expressed about the cost of the Veolia contract and whether this was giving the council value for money. 

·        The CFO was asked about key budget risks, particularly the highest likelihood- commercial rents - and what assumptions had been made.  The CFO stated that it was hoped a balance had been achieved between over optimism and caution and advice had been sought from consultants Lambert Smith Hampton Investment Management on appropriate estimates for the impact of lease events including the duration of void periods and tenant incentives.    Overall, income from property was expected to increase over the MTFS due to lettings at Watford Business Park.

·        It was stressed that occupancy rates across the investment portfolio were generally high.   

·        In response to a question about the reprofiling of capital receipts, the CFO explained that the majority of these came from selling of sites.  A prudent approach was taken as it could take longer than expected to dispose of a site. 

·        In reply to a question about the growth of the council tax base and the collection rate, the CFO stated that the calculation of tax base took account of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 27.