Issue - meetings

(a)       That the second and concluding part of the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) titled Meeting the Financial Challenge be adopted for consultation and development as the first step towards setting balanced budgets for 2016-17 and 2017-18;

(b)       That specific proposals set out by Cabinet for service reform, corporate financing options, and national support and relief be subject to detailed consultation and development; and

(c)        That there is early engagement with Welsh Government (WG) with the support and involvement of the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) as the representative body, on the case for national support and relief as set out in Meeting the Financial Challenge.

The Chief Executive introduced Part II of the Medium Term Financial Strategy for the three year period 2015-2018.  This was the most significant strategy the Council would be presented with and cross chamber support for early engagement with Welsh Government (WG) for some relief was sought.

A detailed presentation was delivered which covered the following areas:

·         Our journey thus far

·         What do the next three years look like?

·         An efficient and innovative Council

·         Council annual efficiency targets 2008/09-2015/16

·         A low funded Council

·         Our three part strategy

·         Business plan efficiency targets 2015/16-2017/18

·         Corporate finance efficiency proposals 2015/16

·         Funding pressures for support and relief

·         Balancing ambition and risk

·         Recommendations

·         What next?

Part I of the Strategy had been published earlier in the summer and provided a forecast of the resources which were likely to be available to the Council for the three year period, including the pressures on those resources.

Part II set out how the Council could manage a significant reduction in resources in a period of major reductions in national funding for local government, whilst seeking to protect local public services and retaining its position as a well governed and high performing local authority in Wales.  This was titled Meeting the Financial Challenge. 

Meeting the Financial Challenge detailed the £52.8m of budget reductions required over three years and explored how Flintshire was funded and performed compared to the rest of the local government sector in Wales  The funding strategy to meet the unprecedented financial challenge was set out in three parts:

            Funding Strategy Part 1: Service

            Funding Strategy Part 2: Corporate Financial Stewardship

            Funding Strategy Part 3: Working with Welsh Government

The strategy concentrated on how to meet the gap in 2016-17 of £20.8M and again in 2017-18 of £13.7m.

            The Chief Executive explained the importance of Flintshire being able to demonstrate that it was an efficient Council before WG would enter into discussions.  If WG did not provide support with flexibilities and some relief then the Council would have to turn to options for much deeper funding cuts which neither it nor the public would find acceptable.

            The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) had been engaged to provide an independent view on the case for Flintshire.  CIPFA tested the presumption that Flintshire was a ‘low funded council in Wales with less flexibility and capability to find sufficient efficiencies under the current funding system and formula’.  The report of CIPFA concluded that:

• Flintshire was a low spending authority on both Social Care and  Education
• Flintshire achieved a relatively high level of performance on both of these services despite the low level of expenditure
• Flintshire spent at an above average level on highways
• Flintshire achieved the highest level of performance in Wales on the performance measure of roads in poor condition

The analysis demonstrated that Flintshire was a low funded and high performing Council in its two principal service areas and was both a higher spending and a higher performer than the average in highways.  With  ...  view the full minutes text for item 48