Issue - meetings

Revenue Budget Monitoring 2014/15 (Month 8)

Meeting: 17/02/2015 - Cabinet (Item 125)

125 Revenue Budget Monitoring 2014/15 (Month 8) pdf icon PDF 87 KB

Additional documents:

Decision:

As detailed in the recommendations.

Minutes:

The Corporate Finance Manager provided Members with the latest revenue budget monitoring information for 2014/15 for the Council Fund and Housing Revenue Account based on actual income and expenditure as at Month 8 and projected forward to year-end based on the most up to date information available.

 

The projected year-end position, as estimated at Month 8 was:

 

Council Fund

·         Net in year expenditure forecast to be £1.014m lower than budget. 

·         Projected contingency reserve balance at 31 March 2015 of £3.955m

 

Housing Revenue Account

·         Net in year expenditure forecast to be £0.324m less than budget

·         Projected closing balance as at 31 March 2015 of £1.490m

 

The table in the report showed the projected position by portfolio which reflected the Council’s new Operating Model, and showed a projected in year expenditure to be £1.014m less than budget.

 

The report provided details on corporate and functional efficiencies, workforce efficiencies, inflation, monitoring budget assumptions and risks and changes to previously reported risks which were now closed.

 

On unearmarked reserves and the current projected outturn at Month 8, the projected balance on the contingency reserve at 31 March 2015 was £3.955m, full details of which were contained in Appendix 4 to the report.

 

The position at Month 8 on the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) was an overall projected underspend of £0.324m and a projected closing balance at Month 8 of £1.490m, which at 4.96% of total expenditure satisfied the prudent approach of ensuring a minimum level of 3%.  Appendix 5 to the report provided details of the reasons for significant variances.

 

The Cabinet Member for Waste Strategy, Public Protection and Leisure asked for an update on the former Euticals Site which was identified as an existing risk in the report.  The Chief Executive explained that an update had also been provided at a recent Corporate Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee.  A meeting was due to be held during the next few weeks with Welsh Government (WG) to discuss an exit strategy for decommissioning of the site which would have a considerable cost.  The authority would request that WG share the total cost incurred to date and to also share the cost of the final decommissioning of the site.  He added that this was a unique situation that had not previously occurred in the UK.  This was due to the site being abandoned following the company going into liquidation. 

 

RESOLVED:

 

(a)       That the report be noted; and

 

(b)       That the projected Council Fund contingency sum as at 31 March 2015 be noted (note the projected final level of balances on the Housing Revenue Account).