Agenda item

Report of the Cabinet Member for Finance and Change detailing the Revenue Budget 2023/24, Medium Term Financial Strategy and Capital Programme.

Report of the Cabinet Member for Finance and Change detailing the Revenue Budget 2023/24, Medium Term Financial Strategy for the period 2023/24 to 2026/27.  The report also sets out the Capital Strategy and Flexible Use of Capital Receipts Strategy and provides details of the capital programmes for the General Fund and Housing Revenue Account (HRA) for the period 2022/23 to 2027/28.

The report identifies how the 2023/24 budget has been balanced since the forecast shortfall reported to Cabinet on 8 November 2022, which was £28.9M.  It outlines how additional funds arising from the November 2022 Autumn Statement and confirmed in the local government finance settlement, including extra council tax flexibilities (£3.3M), together with further savings (£4.98M) and use of reserves (£22.0M) have helped both balance the budget and meet new pressures arising since November.

The following additional recommendation was tabled at the meeting:

Arts Council England has recently agreed in principle to offer Southampton City Council a grant of up to £2.23M in capital towards the cost of repairs to the Art Gallery roof.

There is a requirement for the Council to match fund this grant which has already been budgeted for within the Capital programme.  Given the urgent nature of this grant, which the Arts Council requires to begin by 15 May, it is resolved that

(i)  the above sum is applied to the Capital Programme as funding; and

(ii)  Executive Director for Growth, following consultation with the Executive Director, Corporate Services and the Leader be delegated authority to apply this grant as considered appropriate.

The recommendations therein, including the additional recommendations above, were moved by Councillor Leggett and seconded by Councillor Kaur.

The Council agreed to suspend Council Procedure Rules 14.2, 14.5, 14.6, 14.7, 14.8, 14.9 and 16.2:-

(i)  to enable any amendments to be proposed, seconded and considered at the same time;

(ii)  to enable any amendment to be re-introduced later into the meeting; and

(iii) to revise the time allowed for speakers as follows:-

Movers of motions - 20 minutes

Seconders - 10 minutes

Liberal Democrat/Independent Members – 10 minutes

Other Speakers - 4 minutes

Right of Reply (Executive only) – 10 minutes

RESOLVED that the Revenue Budget 2023/24, Medium Term Financial Strategy, and Capital Programme be adopted as detailed in the report recommendations, including additional recommendation detailed above.

NOTE: All Members of the Council declared a pecuniary interest in the above matter, as payers and setters of Council Tax, noted the dispensation granted by the Monitoring Officer and remained in the meeting during the consideration of the matter.

NOTE – FOR THE SUBSTANTIVE MOTION: Councillors Blatchford, Bogle, M Bunday, T Bunday, Coombs, Cooper, Denness, Fielker, Frampton, Furnell, Goodfellow, Kataria, Kaur, Keogh, Leggett, McEwing, Mitchell, Noon, Paffey, W Payne, Rayment, Renyard, Savage, Shields, Windle and Winning.

NOTE – AGAINST THE SUBSTANTIVE MOTION: Councillors J Baillie, P Baillie, Fitzhenry, Fuller, G Galton, Guest, Guthrie, Hannides, Harris, Houghton, Laurent, Magee, Margetts, Prior, Vassiliou, Vaughan and White.

NOTE – ABSTAINED THE SUBSTANTIVE MOTION: Councillor Blackman