Agenda and minutes

Members and officers must declare any pecuniary or personal interest in any business on the agenda. They should also make declarations at any stage such an interest becomes apparent during the meeting. Consideration should be given to leaving the meeting if the nature of the interest warrants it. If in doubt please contact Democratic Services before the meeting.

13.1            No declarations of interest were made.

Cabinet Members are asked to agree the minutes of the meeting held on 20 July 2022 (cream paper).

14.1            Resolved – that the minutes of the meeting held on 20 July 2022 be approved as a correct record and that they be signed by the Chairman.

Report by the Interim Director of Finance and Support Services.

The Chairman of the Performance and Finance Scrutiny Committee will be invited to speak for up to three minutes on the Council Plan and Medium Term Financial Strategy 2023/24 report.

Each of the main Minority Group Leaders will be invited to speak for up to three minutes on the report.

The Cabinet will then discuss the report.

15.1            Cabinet considered a report by the Interim Director of Finance and Support Services. The report was introduced by Cllr Jeremy Hunt, Cabinet Member for Finance and Property who outlined the Council Plan and Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) as the council’s framework for business and financial planning and decision making. The Cabinet Member highlighted the progress made in the Children’s Services and Fire and Rescue improvement programmes, the challenges faced by Adults Services and national pressures including the cost of living, inflation and recruitment challenges which are likely to impact on the budget and the delivery of services. The Cabinet Member thanked staff for their hard work in these challenging circumstances.

15.2            The report outlines key assumptions but uncertainty in future government funding makes budgeting difficult. The current gap is expected to be £5.6m after savings. It assumes the statutory licence which enables Local Authorities to keep the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) deficit off balance sheets will be maintained for the next financial year.  The Interim Director of Finance and Support Services further explained the assumptions and projections in the report and added that pressures may increase but will be kept under constant review as part of the budget process. 

15.3            Cllr Pieter Montyn, Chairman of the Performance and Finance Scrutiny Committee outlined the comments included those relevant to the Quarter 1 Performance and Resources Report (PRR) and from the Committee’s Business Planning Group. The Committee noted the council plan progress and reported the committee’s desire to scrutinise any savings proposals in light of the national economic challenges. Points of concern included rising energy costs, the DSG deficit, Adult Social Care reform and recruitment and retention challenges. The Committee will want to be kept up to date in these areas. The Chairman reported the budget gap as commendably narrow but questioned whether it would remain this way. The Committee is interested to see how growth and risk are managed in the budget and the role of members within this.

15.4            Cllr Kirsty Lord, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group outlined the challenging national situation and the great level of uncertainty ahead. Cllr Lord hoped the statutory instrument for managing the DSG deficit would be extended and advised of the potential need to account for a higher level of inflation. Cllr Lord agreed with the need to continue to lobby for additional support, however felt that council funding is not a priority for Government. She raised the possibility of a higher level of Council Tax and the difficulties this may pose for households in the County with the backdrop of other economic challenges.

15.5            The following points were made by Cabinet Members in discussion:

Ø  Cllr Paul Marshall, Leader of the council highlighted the notable increase in the West Sussex population and the effects this has on future planning. The national context brings a higher risk to local finances and so prudence in how budgets are managed will be vital, as will ensuring a continued level of resilience.

Ø  ...  view the full minutes text for item 15.

The next meeting of the Cabinet will be held on 29 November 2022.

16.1            The next meeting of the Cabinet will be held on 29 November 2022.