Agenda item

a)  2022/23 Revenue Budget and Council Tax

To consider the report of the Chief Officer (Financial Services) on the proposals for the City Council’s Revenue Budget for 2022/2023 and the Leeds element of the Council Tax to be levied in 2022/2023. 

b)  Capital Programme Update 2022 – 2026

To consider the report of the Chief Officer (Financial Services) on the Capital Programme for the period 2022 – 2026 and which also includes a specific update on the 2021/22 programme.

c)  Treasury Management Strategy 2022/2023

To consider the report of the Chief Officer (Financial Services) presenting the Treasury Management Strategy for 2022/23, whilst also providing an update on the implementation of the 2021/22 strategy.

Further to Minute No. 92, 15^th December 2021, the Chief Officer Financial Services submitted a suite of reports regarding: proposals for the City Council’s Revenue Budget for 2022/23 and the Leeds element of the Council Tax to be levied during the same period; proposals regarding an updated Capital Programme for 2022 – 2026 and also a proposed updated Treasury Management Strategy for 2022/23.

(A)2022/23 Revenue Budget and Council Tax

Prior to the meeting, the Board had received a correction to a recommendation within the report. Specifically, that the final bullet point within recommendation (iv) of the published report was to be amended so that the text ‘An increase of 1.5% (CPI+1%) in dwelling rents’, as included within the originally published report was removed from that recommendation.

RESOLVED –

(a)  That the Council be recommended to note the recommendation of the Council’s statutory officer (the Chief Officer – Financial Services) that the Budget proposals for 2022/23 are robust and that the proposed level of reserves is adequate, as set out at Section 11 of Appendix 1 to the submitted report;

(b)  That subject to the amendment to the final bullet point in recommendation (iv) as detailed above and reflected in resolution (iv) below, Executive Board recommends to Council the adoption of the following:-

(i)  That the revenue budget for 2022/23 totalling £521.9m be approved. This means that the Leeds element of council tax for 2022/23 will increase by 1.99% plus the Adult Social Care precept of 1.00%. This excludes the police and fire precepts which will be incorporated into the report to be submitted to Council on 23rd February 2022;

(ii)  That approval be given to grants totalling £66.0k to be allocated to parishes;

(iii)  That approval be given to the strategy at Appendix 9 of the submitted report in respect of the flexible use of capital receipts;

(iv)  That in respect of the Housing Revenue Account, Council be recommended to approve the budget with the following:-

·  An increase of 4.1% (CPI+1%) in dwelling rents;

·  An increase of 4.9% (RPI) in garage rent;

·  A 35p per week change in the standing charge for Leeds PIPES (Providing Innovative Pro-Environmental Solutions) as the final step towards full cost recovery where tenants have moved from an old district heating scheme to the Leeds PIPES scheme;

·  A 4.9% (RPI) increase in charges for all other District Heating schemes;

·  That service charges for low/medium and multi-storey flats are increased by RPI of 4.9%;

·  That the charge for tenants who benefit from the sheltered support service is increased to £15.62 per week to reflect full cost recovery. The charge is eligible for Housing Benefit;

·  That the subsidy for tenants who are not eligible for benefits but receive the sheltered support service is set at £1.62 per week; therefore the amount payable by these tenants will increase from £12 per week to £14 per week;

·  That the Retirement Life charge for the provision of additional services linked to communal areas and for communal facilities where they are within a standalone community centre will increase by RPI of 4.9%. Whilst a full charge covering communal areas equates to £8.26 and for standalone Community Centres is £3.50, for self-payers this charge has initially been subsidised and introduced over 3 years. In 2022/23 for self-payers this charge for communal areas will be £6.54, subsidised by £1.72 and for standalone community centres will be £2.50, subsidised by £1;

·  That any overall increase to tenants in respect of rents, service and sheltered support who are ‘self-payers’ will be no more than £5 per week.

(v)  That in respect of the Schools Budget, approval be given to the High Needs Block budget for 2022/23, as set out in paragraph 3.4.6 of the Schools Budget Report, as detailed at Appendix 8 to the submitted report;

(c)  That Executive Board’s thanks be conveyed to Scrutiny Boards and all those who took part in the public consultation for their comments and the observations made in consideration of the Council’s proposed Budget.

(B)Capital Programme Update 2022 – 2026

RESOLVED –

(a)  That Executive Board recommends to Council:-

(i)  the approval of the Capital Programme for 2022-2026, totalling £1,877.6m, including the revised projected position for 2021/22, as presented in Appendix A to the submitted report;

(ii)  the approval of the MRP policy statements for 2022/23, as set out in Appendix C to the submitted report; and

(iii)  the approval of the Capital and Investment Strategy, as set out in Appendix D to the submitted report.

(b)  That Executive Board approval be given to the following net injections totalling £342.4m into the Capital Programme, as set out in Appendix A(iii) to the submitted report:-

·  £98.8m of annual programme injections as listed at Appendix A(iv) to the submitted report;

·  £3.8m of Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) Strategic Fund monies;

·  £0.8m of ringfenced capital receipts for the Future Ways of Working (FWOW) Programme; and

·  £239.0m of other injections, primarily relating to the roll forward of the HRA Programme, annual capital grant allocations and other secured external grant funding.

(c)  That it be noted that the above resolutions to inject funding of £342.4m will be implemented by the Chief Officer Financial Services.

(C)Treasury Management Strategy 2022/2023

RESOLVED –

(a)  That the Treasury Strategy for 2022/23, as set out in Section 8.5 of the submitted report, be approved by Executive Board, and that the review of the 2021/22 strategy and operations, as set out in Sections 8.3 and 8.4 of the submitted report, be noted;

(b)  That full Council be recommended to set the borrowing limits for 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24 and 2024/25, as detailed in section 8.6 of the submitted report and be recommended to note the changes to both the Operational Boundary and the Authorised limits;

(c)  That full Council be recommended to set the Treasury Management Indicators for 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24 and 2024/25, as detailed in Section 8.7 of the submitted report;

(d)  That full Council be recommended to set the investment limits for 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24 and 2024/25, as detailed in Section 8.8 of the submitted report.

(The matters referred to in Minute Nos. 111 (A)(a) – 111(A)(c) (Revenue Budget and Council Tax); 111(B)(a)(i) – 111(B)(a)(iii) (Capital Programme) and 111(C)(b) – 111(C)(d) (Treasury Management Strategy), given that they were decisions being made in accordance with the Budget and Policy Framework Procedure Rules, were not eligible for Call In)

(Under the provisions of Council Procedure Rule 16.5, Councillor Golton required it to be recorded that he abstained from voting on the decisions referred to within this Minute)