The Head of Financial Services submitted a report to Cabinet on 10 February 2021 to present the outcome of the budget consultation and agree the Council’s Medium Term Financial Strategy for 2022-23 to 2024-25 and 2021-22 Budget for recommendation to Council.

The Cabinet decisions and any further proposed amendments to the budget will be reported in the briefing note.

Cllr Turner, the Cabinet Member for Finance and Asset Management, will present the report and propose Cabinet’s recommendations.

Amendments to the budget proposed by opposition groups or individual councillors must be received by Committee Services before 1.00pm on Tuesday 16 February 2021 and will be circulated with the briefing note published that day.

The procedure for this item is set out in Part 11.4 of the Council’s Constitution.

A recorded vote must be taken when voting to agree the final budget and medium term financial strategy.

Council is recommended to:

a.    consider Cabinet’s recommendations to Council, including the budget published as part of the agenda for this meeting along with any amendments resulting from the Cabinet meeting of 10 February;

b.    consider the substantive amendments proposed by the opposition groups; and published with the briefing note;

c.    consider any individual amendments; and

d.    agree the recommendations from the Cabinet as presented to Council, or with further amendments as decided by Council.

Recommendations: Cabinet recommends subject to decisions at their meeting on 10 February that Council resolves to:

Approve the 2021-22 General Fund and Housing Revenue Account budgets and the General Fund and Housing Revenue Account Medium Term Financial Plan as set out in Appendices 1-10, noting:

a)    the Council’s General Fund Budget Requirement of £23.648 million for 2021/22 and an increase in the Band D Council Tax of 1.99% or £6.25 per annum representing a Band D Council Tax of £320.17 per annum;

b)    the Housing Revenue Account budget for 2021/22 of £46.649 million and an increase of 1.50% (£1.57 per week) in social dwelling rents from 1 April 2021 giving a revised weekly average social rent of £105.32 as set out in Appendix 5;

c)    the intention to consult Council house tenants on the setting of the initial rent on all new social housing at 5% above the formula rent whilst applying formula rent to any new builds let prior to the end of the consultation period as indicated in paragraph (paragraphs 38- 45);

d)    the General Fund and Housing Revenue Account Capital Programme as shown in Appendix 6;

e)    the changes to fees and charges shown in Appendix 7;

f)     the delegation to the Section 151 Officer in consultation with the Cabinet Member  for Finance and Assets the decision to determine whether it is financially advantageous for the Council to enter into a Business Rates Distribution Agreement as referred to in paragraphs 13-15 below;

g)    the payment into the County Council Pension Fund of £5 million as referred to in the Consultation Budget and paragraph 20 of the report;

h)   the inclusion of an additional loan facility of up to £1million on terms to be agreed by the Head of Financial Services, subject to the consideration and agreement of the Shareholder and Joint Venture Group (SJVG) and Cabinet of a report to Cabinet in March 2021 as referred to in paragraph 55.

Cllr Arshad joined the meeting and Cllr Iley-Williamson left the meeting during the first part of the debate on this item.

Council had before it and considered:

·       The report of the Head of Finance to Cabinet on 10 February 2021 setting out the outcome of the budget consultation and seeking agreement of the Council’s Budget for 2021/22 and the Medium Term Financial Strategy for the following three years;

·       Cabinet’s recommendations as set out in the minutes of their meeting on 10 February 2021;

·       The Liberal Democrat group’s submitted amendments published with the briefing note;

·       The Green group’s submitted amendments published with the briefing note;

·       The Head of Finance’s comments on the amendments published with the briefing note;

·       Three individual amendments submitted and circulated at the meeting

Councillor Turner, seconded by Councillor Brown, proposed agreement of the Budget and the Medium Term Financial Strategy and the eight recommendations from Cabinet.

a)    Liberal Democrat group amendments to the budget

Councillor Roz Smith, seconded by Councillor Wade, moved the Liberal Democrat group amendments.

After debate and immediately before the vote, a named vote was requested by more than 10 councillors.

For the amendments:

Councillors Altaf-Khan, Gant, Garden, Goddard, Gotch, Landell Mills, Roz Smith, Wade (8)

Against the amendments:

Councillors Arshad, Azad, Aziz, Bely-Summers, Brown, Chapman, Clarkson, Cook, Corais, Curran, Fry, Hayes, Henwood, Hollingsworth, Howlett, Humberstone, Kennedy, Lloyd-Shogbesan, Lygo, McManners, Malik, Munkonge, Pressel, Rowley, Simm,  Linda Smith, Tanner, Tarver, Taylor, Tidball, Turner, Upton (32)

Abstentions: Councillors Simmons, Wolff (2)

With more councillors voting against than for, the Liberal Democrat amendments were not carried.

b)    Green group amendments to the budget

Cllr Simmons, seconded by Cllr Wolff, moved the Green group amendments. 

After debate and immediately before the vote, a named vote was requested by more than 10 councillors.

For the amendments:

Councillors Altaf-Khan, Gant, Garden, Goddard, Gotch, Henwood, Landell Mills, Simmons, Roz Smith, Wade, Wolff (11)

Against the amendments:

Councillors Arshad, Azad, Aziz, Bely-Summers, Brown, Chapman, Clarkson, Cook, Corais, Curran, Fry, Hayes, Hollingsworth, Howlett, Humberstone, Kennedy, Lloyd-Shogbesan, Lygo, McManners, Malik, Munkonge, Pressel, Rowley, Simm,  Linda Smith, Tanner, Tarver, Taylor, Tidball, Turner, Upton (31)

Abstentions: (0)

With more councillors voting against than for, the Green group amendments were not carried.

c)    Individual amendment to the budget

Three individual amendments were then submitted to Council for consideration.

(1) Reinstatement of the cut to Green Flag accreditation.

Cllr Wade, seconded by Cllr Landell Mills, proposed the amendment. The S151 officer confirmed the proposals were arithmetically correct.

After debate the amendment was put to the vote.

With more councillors voting against than for, the amendment was not carried.

(2) Delete payment to non-statutory second deputy leader and return funds to General Fund/reserves

The Monitoring Officer confirmed that this was covered by a general dispensation and related to future and not current recipients of special responsibility allowances. Nevertheless Cllr Hayes left the virtual meeting for the duration of the debate as it specifically referred to his special responsibility allowance.

The Monitoring Officer reminded Council that this amendment assumed a change to the councillors’ allowances scheme. Such a change must be made only after taking advice from its Independent Remuneration Panel.

Cllr Gant, seconded by Cllr Garden, proposed the amendment. The S151 officer confirmed the proposals were arithmetically correct.

After debate the amendment was put to the vote.

With more councillors voting against than for, the amendment was not carried.

(3) Additional income from re-introducing inflation linked car parking charges from Y2 (£200k over 3 years); additional expenditure on reversing cut to Oxford Living Wage £80k over 4 years) and top-up depleted homelessness reserve (£120k in third year)

The S151 officer confirmed the proposals were arithmetically correct.

Cllr Simmons moved the amendment, and the Lord Mayor proposed and the meeting agreed that this be put to the vote without debate.

With more councillors voting against than for, the amendment was not carried.

d)    Decision on the Cabinet budget

After a debate, the eight recommendations of the Cabinet as agreed at their meeting on 12 February including the details of the medium term financial strategy, budget for 2020/21, capital programme, HRA, fees and charges and other matters as set out in the published agenda and briefing note for this meeting, and the additional recommendation to amend Appendix 7 as set out in Minute 78, were put to the vote.

In accordance with legislative requirements, a recorded vote was then taken:

For the Cabinet recommendations to Council as set out in the minutes of that meeting:

Councillors Arshad, Azad, Aziz, Bely-Summers, Brown, Chapman, Clarkson, Cook, Corais, Curran, Fry, Hayes, Henwood, Hollingsworth, Howlett, Humberstone, Kennedy, Lloyd-Shogbesan, Lygo, McManners, Malik, Munkonge, Pressel, Rowley, Simm,  Linda Smith, Tanner, Tarver, Taylor, Tidball, Turner, Upton (32)

Against the Cabinet recommendations to Council: Councillors Gant, Garden, Goddard, Wade (4)

Abstentions: Councillors Altaf-Khan, Gotch, Landell Mills, Simmons, Roz Smith, Wolff (6)

With more councillors voting for than against, the resolution to approve the Cabinet recommendations and amendment to Appendix 7 was carried.

Council resolved in accordance with the recorded vote to:

approve the 2021-22 General Fund and Housing Revenue Account budgets and the General Fund and Housing Revenue Account Medium Term Financial Plan as set out in Appendices 1-10, noting:

a)    the Council’s General Fund Budget Requirement of £23.648 million for 2021/22 and an increase in the Band D Council Tax of 1.99% or £6.25 per annum representing a Band D Council Tax of £320.17 per annum;

b)    the Housing Revenue Account budget for 2021/22 of £46.649 million and an increase of 1.50% (£1.57 per week) in social dwelling rents from 1 April 2021 giving a revised weekly average social rent of £105.32 as set out in Appendix 5;

c)     the intention to consult Council house tenants on the setting of the initial rent on all new social housing at 5% above the formula rent whilst applying formula rent to any new builds let prior to the end of the consultation period as indicated in paragraph (paragraphs 38- 45);

d)    the General Fund and Housing Revenue Account Capital Programme as shown in Appendix 6;

e)    the changes to fees and charges shown in Appendix 7 and in the addendum to the Appendix;

f)      the delegation to the Section 151 Officer in consultation with the Cabinet Member  for Finance and Assets the decision to determine whether it is financially advantageous for the Council to enter into a Business Rates Distribution Agreement as referred to in paragraphs 13-15 below;

g)    the payment into the County Council Pension Fund of £5 million as referred to in the Consultation Budget and paragraph 20 of the report;

h)    the inclusion of an additional loan facility of up to £1million on terms to be agreed by the Head of Financial Services, subject to the consideration and agreement of the Shareholder and Joint Venture Group (SJVG) and Cabinet of a report to Cabinet in March 2021, as referred to in paragraph 55 of the report, and a further £150k of revenue, from reserves, to be allocated in the 2021/22 budget.