Agenda item

(a)  Leeds City Council Revenue Budget and Council Tax 2013/2014

To consider the report of the Director of Resources on the proposals for the City Council’s Revenue Budget for 2013/2014 and the Leeds element of the Council Tax to be levied in 2013/2014.

(b)  Capital Programme Update 2013-2016

To consider the report of the Director of Resources on the Capital Programme for the period 2013-2016.

(c)  Treasury Management Strategy 2013/2014

To consider the report of the Director of Resources on the Treasury Management Policy and Strategy for 2013/2014.

(Budget Papers are contained within a separate pack attached to this agenda)

(A)  Leeds City Council Revenue Budget and Council Tax 2013/2014

Further to Minute No. 126, 12th December 2012, the Director of Resources submitted a report on the proposals for the City Council’s Revenue Budget for 2013/2014, on the Leeds element of the Council Tax to be levied in 2013/2014 and on Council House rents for the same period, which had been prepared in the context of the Council’s initial budget proposals agreed by Executive Board in December 2012 and the Local Government Finance Settlement.

Members welcomed the proposal to freeze the Leeds element of the Council Tax for 2013/14, so that it remained the same as the 2012/13 level.

A request was made that the Council ensured that the provision of resource was equitably distributed across all communities throughout the city. 

In conclusion, the Chair highlighted the very significant budgetary challenges that the Council continued to face and emphasised the all-party representations which had been made to Government in respect of the Local Government Finance Settlement which had been allocated to Leeds.

RESOLVED –

(a)  That Council be recommended to approve the Revenue Budget for 2013/14 totalling £583,925,000 as detailed and explained within the submitted report and accompanying papers, with no increase in the Leeds’ element of the Council Tax for 2013/14.

(b)  That Council be recommended to approve grants totalling £123,000 to be allocated to Parishes, as detailed within paragraph 6.7 of the submitted report.

(c)  That in respect of the Housing Revenue Account, Council be recommended to: -

(i) approve the budget at an average rent increase figure of 5.9%;

(ii)   increase the charge for garage rents to £6.78 per week (based on 52 rent weeks);

(iii)  increase service charges in line with rents (5.9%).

(d)  That it be agreed that the line of eligibility for adult community care services remains unchanged for 2013/14.

(B)  Capital Programme Update 2013-2016

The Director of Resources submitted a report setting out the updated Capital Programme for 2013-2016 which included details of forecast resources for that period.

RESOLVED –

(a)  That the following be recommend to Council:-

(i)  That the Capital Programme, as attached to the submitted report, be approved;

(ii)  That the Executive Board be authorised to approve in year amendments to the Capital Programme, including transfers from and to the reserved programme in accordance with Financial Procedure Rules; and

(iii)  That the proposed Minimum Revenue Provision (MRP) policies for 2013/2014, as set out within paragraph 3.6 of the submitted report and as explained in Appendix E, be approved.

(b)  That approval be given to the list of land and property sites shown in Appendix D to the submitted report, being disposed of in order to generate capital receipts for use in accordance with the MRP policy.

(c)  That the Director of Resources be authorised to manage, monitor and control scheme progress and commitments in order to ensure that the programme is affordable.

(C)  Treasury Management Strategy 2013/2014

The Director of Resources submitted a report setting out the Treasury Management Strategy for 2013/2014 and the revised affordable borrowing limits under the prudential framework. In addition, the report also provided a review of strategy and operations in 2012/2013.

RESOLVED –

(a)  That approval be given to the initial treasury strategy for 2013/2014, as set out within Section 3.3 of the submitted report, and that the review of the 2012/13 strategy and operations, as set out within Sections 3.1 and 3.2 of the submitted report, be noted.

(b)  That Council be recommended to set the borrowing limits for 2012/13, 2013/14, 2014/15 and 2015/16, as detailed within Section 3.4 of the submitted report.

(c)  That Council be recommended to set the treasury management indicators for 2012/13, 2013/14, 2014/15 and 2015/16, as detailed within Section 3.5 of the submitted report.

(d)  That Council be recommended to set the investment limits for 2012/13, 2013/14, 2014/15 and 2015/16, as detailed within Section 3.6 of the submitted report.

(The matters referred to in Minute Nos. 170 (A)(a)-170(A)(c)(iii), 170(B)(a)(i)-170(B)(a)(iii) and 170(C)(b)-170(C)(d) being matters reserved to Council, were not eligible for Call In)

(Under the provisions of Council Procedure Rule 16.5, Councillors A Carter and Golton required it to be recorded that they respectively abstained from voting on the decisions referred to within Minute No. 170(A))