Decision details

The Cabinet resolved to recommend the Assembly to:

(i)  Approve a base revenue budget for 2019/20 of £148.820m, as detailed in Appendix A to the report;

(ii)  Approve the adjusted Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) position for 2019/20 to 2020/21 allowing for other known pressures and risks at the current time, as detailed in Appendix B to the report, including the additional cost of borrowing to accommodate the capital costs associated with the implementation of the MTFS;

(iii)  Delegate authority to the Chief Operating Officer, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance, Performance and Core Services, to finalise any contribution required to or from reserves in respect of the 2019/20 budget, pending confirmation of levies and further changes to Government grants prior to 1 April 2019;

(iv)  Approve the Statutory Budget Determination for 2019/20 as set out at Appendix C to the report, reflecting an increase of 2.99% on the amount of Council Tax levied by the Council and the final Council Tax proposed by the Greater London Assembly (8.9% increase), as detailed in Appendix D to the report;

(v)  Note the update on the current projects, issues and risks in relation to Council services, as detailed in section 4 of the report;

(vi)  Approve the Council’s draft Capital Programme for 2019/20 to 2022/23 totalling £744.323m, of which £498.473m was General Fund schemes, as detailed in Appendix E to the report;

(vii)  Approve the Flexible Use of Capital Receipts Strategy as set out in Appendix F to the report;

(viii)  Note the briefing on the potential implications of Brexit for the Council as set out in Appendix G to the report;

(ix)  Note the Chief Finance Officer’s statutory finance report as set out in section 10 of the report, which included a recommended minimum level of reserves of £12m; and

(x)  Approve the updated Dedicated Schools Budget for 2019/20 including the hourly rate payable to Early Years providers (3-4 year olds) as set out in section 11 and Appendix H to the report.