Minute with recommendations and report attached.

The Mayor announced it was her intention to run one single debate on the motion but then take separate named votes at the end of discussion on the 2025/26 Budget and Medium-Term Financial Strategy recommendations (1-6)  and on the statutory calculations for the Council Tax precept (7)

The first named vote was in respect of recommendations 1- 6.

Councillor Paul Stuart formally moved the Motion, which was seconded by Councillor Jean Robinson.

The Civic Mayor then informed Members that two amendments had been received.

Councillors Bird formally moved the Green Group Amendment which was seconded by Councillor Cleary.

Green Group Amendment

·  Insert an additional recommendation: 

Given recent reports from the Office of Environmental Protection and Natural England the £300,000 for Hoylake & West Kirby Beach Maintenance is repurposed as follows: 

1.  £125,000 is allocated to Library provision to provide more time for engagement with local communities and consideration of a future operating model for the library offer in Wirral for the financial year 2025/6; and 

2.  Any remaining funds left unspent after facilitating RNLI operations be allocated to a special reserve to support the development of community-based libraries and/or community asset transfer of existing library assets. 

The Civic Mayor then asked Councillor Gilchrist and Councillor Carubia to formally move and second the Liberal Democrat amendment. Councillor Paul Stuart confirmed that the amendment had been accepted at friendly.

Liberal Democrat Amendment

·  Insert an additional recommendation: 

To request the Director of Finance supported by the Director of Law and Corporate Services to establish a clear programme of dates for both the Committee Budget Oversight Panels and the Finance Working Group which will allow members to: 

·  monitor projected income and budget savings and to allow early identification and notification of savings not being met to members 

·  be briefed on where, how and to what extent budgets are impacted by seasonal variations 

·  be briefed on the impact of future Government spending reviews 

·  ensure that all of the above is reflected in the Council’s Financial Recovery Plan 

The Civic Mayor then informed Members that there was an administrative matter which had necessitated an additional recommendation being prepared. This was in light of the disclosable pecuniary interest declared by Councillor Paula Basnett which related to a specific budget proposal.

The recommendation was as follows,

6.d (ii) Approve specifically the Reduction in Business Support - contained in Appendix 1 (page 173), proposed and recommended by both the Council’s Economy, Regeneration and Housing Committee and subsequently the Council’s Policy and Resources Committee to Council.

The Civic Mayor informed Members that she would ask Councillor Basnett to leave the chamber whilst Council considered the individual savings proposal for which she had made a declaration. The Civic Mayor asked Members to confirm they agreed with the proposed way of dealing with this administrative issue. This was agreed by assent.

Councillor Basnett then left the chamber.

Councillor Paul Stuart then formally moved the additional recommendation, which was seconded by Councillor Jean Robinson.

Recommendation 6.d (ii) was then put to the vote,

It  ...  view the full minutes text for item 36

A report of the Director of Finance set out the budget for the forthcoming financial year 2025/26.

The report was based on the usual work and analysis undertaken by the Section 151 Officer and finance team.

The draft budget was proposed for approval by the Policy and Resources Committee and onward recommendation to Council on 3 March 2025.

All Members of the Council need to agree a budget to fulfil their legal obligation to set a balanced and sustainable budget for 2025/26. The draft budget was offered for consideration accordingly. The report presented the following financial aspects:

• details of the annual budget for 2025/26

• the key elements contributing towards the preparation of the Budget.

• recommendations on the budget and council tax

• the Medium-Term Financial Strategy (MTFS), which incorporates the Medium-Term Financial Plan (MTFP) covering the period from 2025/26 to 2029/30.

The report contained several appendices, some that were required to be published as part of the statutory annual budget process and others that provided the Committee with relevant information relating to short and medium-term budget planning, inclusive of consultation aspects and financial assumptions. These assumptions would change and would be reported through the Council’s governance process for budget monitoring within the Committee system.

The 2025/26 budget had been compiled using the figures in the Final Local Government Finance Settlement for 2025/26, which was laid before the House of Commons and approved on 5 February 2025.

The budget proposals, which had been produced with the engagement of Finance Working Group and the Policy and Service Committees during the last year, and the associated recommendations laid out in the report were a key step in achieving the Council’s commitment to produce a stable, prudent and sustainable financial basis to operate from. The proposals also recognised the finite resources available and prioritising them for the best outcomes for Wirral, with the ongoing aim of delivering better services.

The report was necessarily extensive, covering complex information on a number of areas including:

• The Section 151 officer’s report on the robustness of estimates for budget calculations

• The national context and local government funding The approach to formulating the Budget.

• The Budget Proposals

• The Medium-Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) with Medium-Term Financial Plan (MTFP)

• Council Tax

• Business Rates

• Schools’ Budgets

• Levies

• The Council’s Financial Reserves

Members were informed that the Government was undertaking a review of funding for local authorities and had promised a three -year settlement later this year, which will provide a clearer picture of the future funding.

This current forecast and the budget for 2025 -26 illustrated that the Council continued to face a challenging position in relation to the demand pressures set against the available funding.

The terms of the financial settlement for this year were received in December 2024 and had been approximately £11 million better than had been assumed within the budget projections pre-settlement.

The proposed budget took account of all the current known demographic and service pressures  ...  view the full minutes text for item 91