Issue - meetings

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Investment introduced a report on the Treasury Management Annual Report 2016/17 which set out the key areas of performance during the year.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Investment drew the Assembly’s attention to the following key points:

-  Investment income for the year was £4.6m (2015/16: £3.7m) compared to a budget of £2.1m;

-  The Council’s average interest return of 1.42% for 2016/17 was 0.83% higher than the average London Peer Group return and 0.73% higher than the Local Authority average return;

-  The value of investments as at 31 March 2017 totalled £232.9m;

-  The value of long-term borrowing as at 31 March 2017 totalled £457.3m;

-  The value of short-term borrowing as at 31 March 2017 totalled £85.0m;

-  The Council did not breach its 2016/17 authorised borrowing limit of £855m or its Operational Boundary limit of £745m; and

-  The Council complied with all other set treasury and prudential limits.

The Assembly were pleased to note the role of scrutiny was recognised within the report and noted that the Treasury Management Strategy was a living document that had to be planned and flexible for the future.

The Assembly resolved to:

(i)  Note the Treasury Management Annual Report for 2016/17;

(ii)  Note that the Council complied with all 2016/17 treasury management indicators;

(iii)  Approve the actual Prudential and Treasury Indicators for 2016/17;

(iv)  Note that the Council borrowed £60m from the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) in June 2016 to fund capital expenditure;

(v)  Note that on 31 March 2017 a number of Loan Facility agreements were agreed between the Council and a number of Council owned Special Purpose Vehicles; and

(vi)  Maintain the delegated authority to the Chief Financial Officer, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Investment, to continue to proportionally amend the counterparty lending limits agreed within the Treasury Management Strategy Statement to consider the additional cash holdings resulting from borrowing from the European Investment Bank and the PWLB.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Investment introduced the Treasury Management Annual Report for 2016/17 which set out the key areas of performance during the year. 

The Cabinet Member advised that investment income for the year was £4.6m compared to the budget of £2.1m, while the Council’s average interest return of 1.42% for 2016/17 was 0.83% higher than the average London Peer Group return and 0.73% higher than the Local Authority average return.  The Cabinet Member added, however, that the current volatility stemming from the General Election result was likely to have a negative effect on markets.

The Cabinet resolved to recommend the Assembly to:

(i)  Note the Treasury Management Annual Report for 2016/17;

(ii)  Note that the Council complied with all 2016/17 treasury management indicators;

(iii)  Approve the actual Prudential and Treasury Indicators for 2016/17;

(iv)  Note that the Council borrowed £60m from the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) in June 2016 to fund capital expenditure;

(v)  Note that on 31 March 2017 a number of Loan Facility agreements were agreed between the Council and a number of Council owned Special Purpose Vehicles; and

(vi)  Maintain the delegated authority to the Chief Financial Officer, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Investment, to continue to proportionally amend the counterparty lending limits agreed within the Treasury Management Strategy Statement to consider the additional cash holdings resulting from borrowing from the European Investment Bank and the PWLB.

(Councillor Turner left the meeting at this point.)