Agenda item

Exempt Supplementary Paper

A.12/16           

A report was presented that advised that, in line with common practice in the commercial sector, local authorities were now required to approve their accounts following the completion of an audit.

The report also highlighted that an underspend of £69,000 had been generated in 2015/16, which had been transferred to the General Fund Balance (unearmarked revenue reserve).

In discussion, reference was made to:-

(a)  the tone of the foreword.  In reiterating previously raised concerns, some Members felt that the tone of the foreword gave emphasis to Council success stories and, as a consequence, it should also be more conciliatory and thereby reflective of the difficult year that the Council had endured.  In response, the Section 151 Officer explained that the Narrative Statement (which was a new requirement for the 2015/16 Accounts) contained a section on Performance Indicators for the year.  In this section, it was explained that performance in some key areas had been below that which should be expected and also that improvement plans had been put in place;

(b)  the Waste Transfer Station.  For clarity, officers informed that Torbay Transfer Station was used for those properties in the South Hams that were located in closer proximity to Torbay.  It was noted that this operational decision was taken in light of costs being directly linked to the distance that waste was being transported;

(c)  the Commercial Services variations.  When questioned, officers stated that the £103,000 increase in expenditure for Commercial Services was largely as a consequence of higher staffing and agency costs that had been dictated by external market forces.  In expanding upon this point, a Member expressed her great concerns over the seemingly ever increasing cost pressures in relation to waste and street cleaning;

(d)  the Local Authority Controlled Company (LACC) proposals.  Having been informed that Zurich Municipal had undertaken a review (for no charge to the Council) into the strategic risks relating to the LACC proposals, it was PROPOSED and SECONDED and when put to the vote declared CARRIED that this matter be included on the Committee agenda for its next meeting on 22 September 2016;

(e)  the average end to end time target for Benefits New Claims.  In expressing concerns at the current performance of this indicator, a Member felt that this should be given greater consideration and was of the view that even the prescribed target was excessively long;

(f)   planning enforcement cases.  Officers confirmed that the Council decision to allocate additional resources for planning enforcement had begun to pay off and the caseload backlog was now reducing;

(g)  the Revenue Support Grant.  In response to a Member lamenting the loss of the Grant, the Leader advised that both the Local Government Association (LGA) and the District Council Network (DCN) met frequently with the Secretary Of State.  During their discussions, LGA and DCN representatives were regularly pressing the need for all local authorities to continue to be in need of this revenue source from Central Government;

(h)  the Marine Infrastructure Reserve.  A Member highlighted that a £40,000 contribution had been made to this Reserve from Salcombe Harbour Board and made a plea that these monies were ringfenced for projects related to the Kingsbridge / Salcombe Estuary;

(i)    the reductions in Coastal Recovery Grant.  When questioned, officers advised that they would provide an explanation at the next Audit Committee meeting for this reduction.

It was then:

RESOLVED

That the draft Statement of Accounts for the Financial Year ended 31 March 2016 be noted.