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The Scrutiny Corporate and Resources Committee
noted the position set out by officers in relation to Housing
Revenue Account (HRA) rent setting, fees and charges, and the
accompanying appendices, and RESOLVED to make the following
recommendations to the Executive:

That the Executive proceed to
determine HRA rents, fees and charges as delegated, ensuring
statutory notice periods and operational deadlines are met, and
that Scrutiny is provided with early sight of any proposed changes
as part of quarterly monitoring.
That the Executive ensure Appendices
H, I and J are presented to Full Council as scheduled, with clear
explanations of the relationship between the medium?term financial
plan, the capital programme, and the refreshed 30?year HRA Business
Plan, noting that Members will have a further opportunity to
scrutinise these items at the Full Council meeting in
February.
That the Executive formally note
that Appendix K was not available to this Committee at its meeting
and therefore could not be considered or noted. The Committee
recommends that the Executive ensure Appendix K is fully
incorporated into the Executive agenda pack for 11 February and
that sufficient time is provided for public and Member review prior
to Full Council.
That the Executive request officers
to quantify, if possible, the potential impact of the loss of the
Public Works Loan Board preferential borrowing discount on future
housing delivery and include this information within the report
presented to the Executive, recognising that while the current
capital programme remains affordable, the absence of the discount
may constrain future flexibility.
That the Executive consider
including further narrative on the risks identified by the Section
151 Officer, particularly regarding interest cover, debt servicing
ratios and the accelerated capital programme, and outline how these
risks will be monitored and mitigated over the first five years of
the plan.
That the Executive ensure the
refreshed 30?year HRA Business Plan presented to Full Council
includes clear explanations of how the HRA will balance new?build
ambitions, major repairs, retrofitting requirements and Energy
Performance Compliance (EPC) compliance by 2030, with transparency
over affordability implications and any trade?offs required.

 
The Committee confirmed that, subject to the
removal of Appendix K from its recommendations for this meeting, it
supported the remaining proposed course of action and recognised
that Members will be able to scrutinise the full suite of
appendices again at Full Council.