Issue - meetings

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Core Services introduced the Council’s revenue budget monitoring report for the 2022/23 financial year as at 30 November 2022 (period 8).

The Council’s General Fund revenue budget for 2022/23 was £183.06m and the forecast outturn position at the end of October projected a net overspend of £15.001m once movements to and from reserves and income had been taken into account, which represented an improvement of £1.6m compared to the previous month.  The Cabinet Member commented that despite the Council adding £9.4m to the 2022/23 budget to meet known demand and cost pressures, the current overspend projection reflected the failure of the Government to properly fund local authorities, particularly Barking and Dagenham, over the past 10 years.

The Cabinet Member confirmed that the Council’s Budget Support Reserve was sufficient to cover the current level of overspend and he expected that overspend to reduce slightly by the year-end.  He stressed, however, that a significant depletion of that reserve fund or new unforeseen pressures could mean that it would be necessary to drawdown from the main General Fund Reserve in future years.

Arising from the discussions, the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health Integration asked that the Brocklebank scheme listed in the schedule of proposed savings for 2022/23 be progressed as soon as possible due to its financial impact as well as the need for local provision for adults with disabilities.

Cabinet resolved to note the projected revenue outturn forecast for the 2022/23 financial year as set out in section 2 and Appendix A of the report.