Agenda item

To receive a report from the Director of Finance, Resources & Customer Services reviewing and seeking approval to changes in the local Council Tax Support Scheme for 2015/16, which the Council is required to produce under section 13A(1)(a) and Schedule 1A of the Local Government Finance Act 1992.

 

The report also recommends the 2015/16 council tax and business rate bases (Appendix D and E).

 

(Report No.154)

(Key Decision – Reference No.4016)

 

Members are asked to note that the NNDR 1 DCLG Business Rate Base Return (Appendix E) has been marked as “To Follow” pending completion, following receipt from Department of Communities & Local Government in January 15.

Councillor Stafford moved and Councillor Taylor seconded the report of the Director of Finance, Resources & Customer Services (No.154) reviewing and seeking approval to the local Council Tax Support Scheme for 2015/16, which the Council was required to produce under Section 13A (1) (a) and Schedule 1A of the Local Government Finance Act 1992.  In addition approval was being sought to the Council Tax and Business Rate Taxbases for 2015/16.

 

NOTED

 

1.      As part of the Government’s welfare reform programme, the Council had adopted (in January 2013) a local Council Tax Support Scheme and was now required, on an annual basis, to consider whether it wished to revise or replace its scheme.

 

2.      Having reviewed operation of the scheme and undertaken a programme of consultation (as detailed in sections 4 and 5 and Appendix C of the report) along with an Equalities Impact Assessment (as detailed in Appendix B of the report) no change had been recommended to the Council Tax Support Scheme for 2015/16, other than to include statutory regulation amendments and national uprating of social security benefit rates.

 

3.      The full Council Tax Support Scheme had been included as Appendix A to the report.

 

4.      In relation to the Business Rate Taxbase for 2015/16

 

a.      the business rates announcements within the Chancellors Autumn Statement affecting future business rates, as set out in section 5 of Appendix E (Business Rate Taxbase Return 2015/16).

 

b.      as a result of the benefits the announcements referred to in a. above were expected to provide for small and high street businesses it had been recommended that the Discretionary Rate Relief Policy should be amended to reflect the proposed changes.

 

5.      In response to a request for clarification from the Leader of the Opposition, the Cabinet Member for Finance confirmed that the consultation followed in relation to the Council Tax Support Scheme was felt to have complied with the Supreme Court judgement delivered in October 2014 around the required consultation process for Council Tax Support Schemes.

 

The recommendations in the report were then put to the vote and agreed as follows

 

AGREED

 

(1)       The Local Council Tax Support Scheme for 2015/16 (as detailed in Appendix A to the report).

 

(2)     Pursuant to the report and in accordance with the Local Authorities (Calculation of the Tax Base) (England) Regulations 2012, the amount calculated by the London Borough of Enfield as its Council Tax Base for 2015/16 shall be 91,714 Band D equivalents (as detailed in Appendix D of the report).

 

(3)     The Department for Communities and Local Government NNDR1 business rate base return for 2015/16 (as detailed in Appendix E of the report).

 

(4)     The amendment to the discretionary rate relief scheme as set out in 2.2 of Appendix E to the report. 

 

(5)     The extension of the business rate transitional scheme as detailed in 2.3 of Appendix E to the report.

 

In accordance with requirements introduced in February 2014, under the Standing Order Regulations 2014, a recorded vote was taken in relation to decisions (1) – (5) above, given their relevance to the budget setting process, with the result as follows:

 

For: 56

 

Councillor Abdul Abdullahi

Councillor Daniel Anderson

Councillor Dinah Barry

Councillor Chris Bond

Councillor Yasemin Brett

Councillor Alev Cazimoglu

Councillor Erin Celebi

Councillor Lee Chamberlain

Councillor Bambos Charalambous

Councillor Jason Charalambous

Councillor Katherine Chibah

Councillor Don Delman

Councillor Nick Dines

Councillor Guney Dogan

Councillor Sarah Doyle

Councillor Christiana During

Councillor Pat Ekechi

Councillor Peter Fallart

Councillor Krystle Fonyonga

Councillor Achilleas Georgiou

Councillor Alessandro Georgiou

Councillor Christine Hamilton

Councillor Ahmet Hasan

Councillor Elaine Hayward

Councillor Robert Hayward

Councillor Ertan Hurer

Councillor Suna Hurman

Councillor Jansev Jemal

Councillor Eric Jukes

Councillor Nneka Keazor

Councillor Adeline Kepez

Councillor Joanne Laban

Councillor Bernie Lappage

Councillor Dino Lemonides

Councillor Derek Levy

Councillor Mary Maguire

Councillor Don McGowan

Councillor Andy Milne

Councillor Terence Neville

Councillor Ayfer Orhan

Councillor Ahmet Oykener

Councillor Ann Marie Pearce

Councillor Daniel Pearce

Councillor Vicki Pite

Councillor Michael Rye

Councillor George Savva

Councillor Toby Simon

Councillor Alan Sitkin

Councillor Edward Smith

Councillor Andrew Stafford

Councillor Claire Stewart

Councillor Jim Steven

Councillor Doug Taylor

Councillor Ozzie Uzoanya

Councillor Glynis Vince

 

Against: 0

 

Abstention: 0