Issue - meetings

To seek agreement for the  strategic directors to work with cabinet members to manage and mitigate the impact of in-year grant reductions announced as part of the national emergency budget package, to note the clawback of the pay award inflation budget and seek agreement to instruct the finance direct to ask strategic directors to identify savings of 25% over the three years 2011/12- 2013/14

This item had not been circulated five clear days in advance of the meeting. The chair agreed to accept the item for reasons of urgency because of the significant level of reductions required for in-year grant funding and the need to commence action to manage and mitigate this.

RESOLVED:

1.  That the strategic directors be instructed to work with cabinet members to manage and mitigate the impact of in-year grant reductions announced as part of the national emergency budget package.

2.  That the clawback of the pay award inflation budget to corporate contingency, given the proposed 2010/11 pay freeze for public sector employees be noted.

3.  That the finance director be instructed to ask strategic directors to identify savings of 25% over the three years 2011/12 – 2013/14 in line with the public sector spending cuts.

4.  That strategic directors be instructed to report back to the finance director and cabinet member for finance and resources on their progress in managing in-year reductions by the end of August. That cabinet agrees that the leader delegate authority to the cabinet member for finance and resources to consider at the point whether any of the £940,000 (as estimated in paragraph 28 of the report) that is being clawed back into corporate contingency should be used to offset any exceptional pressures arising from these reductions.

5.  That the leader of the council be instructed to write to the Secretary of State explaining the impact of the potential cuts arising from the emergency budget on deprived inner-city boroughs like Southwark to enable the Secretary of State to make representations to the Treasury in the comprehensive spending review process. That the three borough Members of Parliament also be involved in making this representation.

6.  That the finance director be instructed to put together plans for approval by the leader and cabinet member for finance and resources, for public consultation in the autumn on the impact of the emergency budget over the next four years on the council to seek the community’s views on their priorities for services and savings.