Issue - meetings

To review the outline budget for 2022-2023 and the Medium Term Financial Strategy.

The process for setting balanced budgets for 2022/23, which involved each service committee reviewing draft budgets, was explained.  Various assumptions had been made in anticipation of the government’s budget settlement in December.  Local authorities with responsibility for education and social care were expected to receive better settlements than district councils.

The Committee:

·         Recommended to Council that the base budget for 2022-23 take into account an additional 1% pay award for 2021-22, in accordance with its resolution on the revenue monitoring report at agenda item 7.

·         Recommended to Council that it apply the maximum empty property council tax premia for properties which were empty for a) up to 2 years, b) 5 to 10 years and c) more than 10 years.

·         Recommended to Council that it seek to protect its council tax base over the four-year outline budget period by increasing council tax by the maximum allowed by the Government limits, whilst seeking to find savings and efficiencies to close its budget gaps.

·         Supported the range of measures set out in the proposed Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS).