Conservatives deliver a balanced budget

The General Fund and HRA Budget for 2024/25 was passed at Full Council on Thursday

By Cllr Stuart Sullivan, Cabinet Member for Resources & Commercial

For the second year in succession, I have presented a budget, the compilation of which has been adversely affected by unforeseen and extreme financial pressures. This has again required difficult decisions that, as a Conservative Administration, we would not take unless absolutely necessary.

Despite these external shocks to the finances of the Council, the Administration has nevertheless continued its promised programme of investments in the Borough and will continue to implement projects and policies that improve the lives of its citizens, while ensuring the Council remains financially viable both now and in the future.

As detailed in the report, the General Fund has seen an additional net £2.3 million revenue budget pressure in the current financial year, to add to the £1.5m forecast budget gap for 2024/25. This was due to an increase in the cost of homelessness of £1.5 million over budget. The cost of council staff wages also being £800,000 over budget due to the nationally-mandated 5.94% pay rise. The costs arising from difficulties in delivering the new cinema added another £600,000. Even the £600,000 fall in utility costs should be viewed in the context of still being £800,000 higher than in 2022. To help address these impacts and others, we are therefore reluctantly proposing to increase Council Tax by 2.98%.

"Despite these external shocks to the finances of the Council, the Administration has nevertheless continued its promised programme of investments in the Borough and will continue to implement projects and policies that improve the lives of its citizens, while ensuring the Council remains financially viable both now and in the future."

Social rents will increase by 7.7% per the permitted formula. As explained in the report and demonstrated by graphics, even a slightly smaller increase would be insufficient to keep the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) sustainable and able to withstand any further unexpected financial shocks beyond the additional £11 million for Brooke House, as well as implement an extensive capital programme and the Safe & Sound estates regeneration. It should also be borne in mind that last year Morgan Sindall received a contractually agreed 10.1% inflation rate increase while rents increased by only 7%; the effects of which still feed into the current HRA position.

Increasing rents by 7.7% also makes the HRA more viable in the long term by making inroads into its 30-year debt repayment schedule, as shown in the graphic below. We recognise the additional costs the rent increase will impose on those who do not have rent paid for them via Housing Benefit and will therefore increase the Discretionary Housing Payment fund by £50,000 – an increase in that fund also of 7.7%, to dovetail with the rent increase.

Returning to the General Fund, even with the Council Tax increase, the Administration has made a range of efficiencies and cost-cutting measures, such as saving £100,000 from its Worldpay contract and saving £40,000 by removing Allpay as a payment option, while implementing £1 million of savings via IT upgrades, as well as efficiencies, there has also been some assistance from the Conservative Government – with a 5% increase in Government funding. In addition, a restructuring exercise was undertaken by the Chief Executive to ensure the officer management structure at Basildon Council is as efficient as possible, while delivering on the needs of the taxpayers and the Administration.

Even though dealing with the financial pressures I have mentioned, the Conservative Administration has still managed to fulfill its promises made in the last budget – we have completed and opened the swimming pool and skatepark in Pitsea, continued the Laindon Community Centre redevelopment, started a new skate park in Billericay and undertaken work to regenerate estates under the Safe & Sound project.

Looking to the future, we will also continue to fund free weekend and Christmas car parking in Billericay and Wickford to keep those high streets viable, community wardens to keep our citizens safer, while raising the grounds maintenance budget by £136,000 to increase the amount of grass cutting and/or pruning across the Borough to improve its appearance.

 

"Even though dealing with the financial pressures I have mentioned, the Conservative Administration has still managed to fulfill its promises made in the last budget..."

This budget also continues our ambitious investment programme, with £1.15 million funding for the new cinema in Basildon Town Centre, £2.55 million for the Community Diagnostic Centre in Pitsea, £2.3 million for the Creative Campus in the Town Centre, £700,000 to complete maintenance works to the Towngate Theatre, continuation of the Safe & Sound programme, as well as £100,000 for Member investments.

In the context of the general financial circumstance, as well as the financial pressures specific to Basildon Council, I can therefore justify the proposed increases detailed in the budget, which will enable the Council to remain both financially viable and able to continue with this Administration’s plans to improve the Borough. In addition, not only is this year’s budget balanced, but the projected budget deficits for the following two years, so long as there are no further unforeseen financial shocks, can be realistically managed. We are therefore not in the position, as so many other councils are, of issuing or being in danger of issuing a Section 114 bankruptcy notice. To be able to state that, having dealt with the financial pressures of the last two years, while delivering and continuing to deliver major investments and improvements to the Borough, has been no mean feat.

You can watch the live webcast of the Budget meeting on the Council's YouTube channel here. It is worth noting that only four Labour councillors were in attendance at the meeting, with the other six all having sent apologies, and there was no Alternative Budget moved by the Official Opposition. This shows they have no plan to balance the books or deliver on their electoral promises. They are not fit to govern.