Purpose

The report outlines the treasury management activities of the Council in the third quarter of 2023/24.

Decision

RESOLVED:

1. That Cabinet noted the following:

a)              That at the end of Quarter 3 (31 December 2023), the current expected level of savings delivery is £39.798m. That savings not yet confirmed amount to £11.593m.

b)              That demand-led services are forecasting significant overall budget pressures of £28.495m in the year, which are likely to continue into the coming year. These are pressures are included within the budget for next year. After planned application of £20.5m of reserves set out in the reports for Q1 and Q2, the net budget pressure in People directorate is reduced to £7.995m.

c)              Net service pressures across all areas amount to £14.632m (see table1).

d)              The result of A-C above with no further actions and including changes to corporate budget forecasts and anticipated grant income is a forecast overall overspend of £14.533m.

1. That Cabinet approved the following, in line with the Q1 and Q2 monitoring reports:

•            The reallocation of £9.7m of earmarked reserves to the General Fund Balance

•            The application of £20.5m of funds from the General Fund Balance to mitigate pressures in social care

1. That Cabinet approved that Shropshire Council acts as accountable body for the Innovation Regions Programme.