Agenda item

Cabinet received a report providing the budget monitoring position up to 30 September 2017-18 for both revenue and capital budgets and included an update on key activity data for the council’s highest risk budgets.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Mr John Simmonds, introduced the item for members, in particular he referred to the following:

      i.        That the predicted overspend was proving stubborn to reduce and currently stood at £13.8million before planned management action. The net projected revenue variance for the Council after these Corporate Directors adjustments were factored in was £8.330m. He assured members that he was confident that the actions identified were realistic and would achieve the expected reductions to the overspend. 

    ii.        That £4million of the residual £8million overspend was related to the associated costs of support for unaccompanied asylum seeking children, particularly those now over, or about to turn, 18years old.  Discussions continued between Kent County Council and Government to address the matter and should the negotiations be successful the residual overspend would be much reduced.

   iii.        The reported overspend was a result of demand on services and this made reducing it to achieve a balanced budget extremely difficult.

The Corporate Director for Finance, Mr Andy Wood, spoke to the item.  He reported that the very latest figures showed an improvement in the area of Adults Social Care and Health. He agreed with Mr Simmonds emphasis on the importance of a resolution to the high costs of asylum seeking children in Kent and he was confident that some financial assistance would be forthcoming form Government but whether it would cover the total cost was still to be agreed.  Finally he assured members that the Corporate and Directorate Management teams were confident of a further significant reduction to this forecast without the need for blanket moratoria on spending.

The Leader reported that he had received assurances from the Minister of State for Immigration, Brandon Lewis, that the new grant funding announcements would take place in January and that they would include any retrospective look at costs incurred by Kent County Council.  As other council’s looked to the outcome of talks between Kent County Council and the Government, the success of the national transfer scheme was dependant on a fair settlement for Kent county council.

The Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Education, Mr Roger Gough, spoke to the item.  He referred to the National Transfer Scheme and agreed that its slow down, following a good start, was undoubtedly linked to the issue of financial provision for asylum seeking children once they became care leavers.  He hoped that, as the Home Office also wanted the scheme to be a success this would help to influence a fair offer for Local Government.

Continuing on the theme of asylum, the Leader said that he would write to Kent’s MPs asking for help to put pressure on the government to agree a fair financial settlement for the future and to retrospectively address costs incurred by Local Government.

It was RESOLVED: