London Borough of Enfield Budget Consultation including the Autumn Statement 2016
To receive a presentation on the London Borough of Enfield 2017/18 budget proposals from Jayne Fitzgerald, Head of Strategic Finance.
Minutes:
The Board received a presentation on LB Enfield’s 2017/18 budget consultation from Jayne Fitzgerald, Head of Strategic Finance.
Budget Presentation
Jayne Fitzgerald highlighted the following:
? The public consultation had just been launched to inform the 2017/18 budget. Copies of the consultation document were tabled.
? Declining government funding was projected to 2019/20 and this was the period of certainty over the funding to be received by the Council.
? A number of assumptions were built into the medium term financial plan, including savings, inflation, and pay award levels; and an assumed 1.99% increase in Council Tax. In 2019/20 councils would also be able to raise an additional 2% as long as this was earmarked for adult social care, and it was assumed that Enfield would do this.
? Pressures and opportunities included new legislation eg the national living wage, the large regeneration scheme at Meridian Water, and starting to plan for what the increase in business rates might be.
? The recent Autumn Statement had not included new funding for adult social care, and overall did not bode well for any additional funds for local government.
? Last year, over 3,300 people took part in the budget consultation on paper and online and at focus groups and briefings, and the results were reported to the Overview and Scrutiny budget meeting. The majority of respondents preferred an increase in Council Tax rather than service cuts. Respondents traditionally chose street scene areas as the priority, followed by adult social care.
? The consultation this year asked people “if you have any comments on how the Council should prioritise spending or make savings to help find the £58.5 million in savings by 2020/21, let us know”. The results would be fed into the Overview and Scrutiny Committee budget meeting in the New Year.
Questions / Comments
1. Ray James questioned the quoted Council spending figure for Services to older people and vulnerable adults. It was confirmed that the figures were gross and before any fees and charges.
2. Councillor Taylor acknowledged the difficulty in providing the appropriate level of information in the consultation exercise, and hoped that people would take the opportunity to express their views in the consultation document.