Agenda item

Policy and Budget Framework - Medium Term Financial Strategy and the Council Strategy

Minutes:

The report before members included the budget recommendations, Medium Term Financial Strategy, budget consultation report, scrutiny budget report and due regard statement.

The Chief Executive explained the procedure that would be followed at the meeting. First, Cllr Mark Hawthorne, Leader of the Council, and Cllr Lynden Stowe, Cabinet Member for Finance and Change, would be asked to present the recommendations from the Cabinet.

Second, in order to reach a position where a substantive motion could be debated, the other political groups would be invited to propose amendments to the budget but there would be no debate at that stage.  This would be a departure from the normal procedure where only one amendment could be moved and discussed at any one time.  The Chairman therefore proposed that under procedure rule 23.1 the following part of procedure rule 12.5 be suspended for the duration of the budget debate:

‘Only one amendment may be moved and discussed at any one time.  No further amendment may be moved until the amendment under discussion has been dealt with.’

The Vice-chairman seconded the motion and, on being put to the vote, the motion was supported.

Once the amendments had been presented, the Chairman would call for an adjournment to provide an opportunity for the Group Leaders to reach a common position. 

After the adjournment, the Leader of the Council would advise members of those areas where it had been possible to reach agreement.  Any amendments which had not been accepted or withdrawn would then be presented by the groups, debated and voted upon. 

Thereafter all members would have an opportunity to debate the budget in line with the normal rules of debate.  At the end of the debate, the Leader of the Council would have the right of reply. 

Finally, a recorded vote would be proposed by the Chairman on the substantive motion, seconded by the Vice-chairman.

 

Conservative Group

Cllr Mark Hawthorne, the Leader of the Council, and Cllr Lynden Stowe, the Cabinet Member for Finance and Change, presented the recommendations from the Cabinet meeting held on 29 January 2020.

 

Cllr Hawthorne explained that the budget delivered a 7.1% increase in investment in frontline services.  He highlighted the additional investment in Adult Social Care, Children’s Services, climate change, Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service, supporting homeless people, infrastructure and highways.  He thanked Cllr Richard Boyles, Cabinet Member for Children’s Safeguarding and Early Years, and Chris Spencer, Director of Children’s Services, for leading the improvement work in Children’s Services.  The budget provided an extra £12.9 million (14.7%) for the improvement plan. 

 

He said that he was particularly pleased that Gloucestershire had been able to accommodate 300 Syrian refugees, more than any other county in the South West. 

 

He noted that the Council was showing its commitment to climate change through investment in public transport, cycle routes, schools and electric charging points.  He said that this was before the Council received any of the £5 billion recently announced by the Government for buses and cycling.

 

Cllr Stowe reminded members about the public sector equality duty and the need for them all, as decision makers on the Medium Term Financial Strategy, to show ‘due regard’.  The due regard statement formed an integral part of the Council’s budget process.

 

He stated that it was a good budget for Gloucestershire that embedded climate change and the green growth agenda into the Council’s routine activities.  He said that the total budget of just under £470 million provided more funding for people that were most in need across the county.  He believed that it carried less risk as the savings required were much less than in  previous budgets.  He was pleased that it had been possible to fund the overspend on Children’s Services without seriously impacting on reserves. 

 

He thanked Steve Mawson, Executive Director: Corporate Resources, and Paul Blacker, Finance Director, for their work in preparing the budget.   He noted that Steve Mawson as Section 151 Chief Finance Officer had confirmed that the level of reserves and financial position of the Council were sustainable moving forward. 

 

Liberal Democrat Group

Cllr Paul Hodgkinson, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group, and Cllr Jeremy Hilton presented the Liberal Democrat Group’s amendments to the budget (see below).  They said that the Conservative Administration’s budget was business as usual and failed to recognise the climate change emergency that had been declared following the Liberal Democrat Group’s motion to Council on 15 May 2019.  They said that their amendments helped the Council get its own house in order and encouraged modal shift by supporting cycling and public transport. They noted the damage that had been done to the Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service through years of financial cuts and they welcomed the additional funding that was proposed.  They acknowledged the need to increase funding for Children’s Services following the poor Ofsted inspection but they were anxious that spending remained within budget.

 

1     Cycleways – £400,000 increase in dedicated cycleways spending from £100,000 to £500,000. Funded from capital highways budget ‘unclassified structural maintenance’ (£5.2 million in budget)

 

2     Footways - £30,000 for a one-off study in barriers to mobility for people with a disability. Funded from unallocated top-sliced revenue highways budget.

 

3     Highways Local – Increase Highways Local by £20,000 per member (up to £40,000), at a total a cost of £1,060,000. This will be funded from capital (75%) and revenue (25%): £795,000 from ‘class 3 roads structural maintenance’ (£7 million in budget) and £265,000 from unallocated top-sliced revenue highways budget.

 

4     Public transport buses - £200,000 to support the upgrade of at least 10 urban buses to Euro 6 standard. Funded from capital highways budget – ‘unclassified roads structural maintenance’ (£5.2 million in budget)

 

5     Bus shelters - £100,000 to be spent on bus shelters. Funded from capital highways budget – ‘unclassified roads structural maintenance’ (£5.2 million in budget)

 

6     Young carers’ travel – £120,000 for free bus travel for young carers without their cared for individuals. Funded from unallocated top-sliced revenue highways budget.

 

7     Public transport subsidies - £1,000,000 for public transport subsidies. Funded from unallocated top-sliced revenue highways budget.

 

8     Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) fund - Reinstating the £100,000 TRO fund to help councillors pass TROs without financial impediments. Funded from unallocated top-sliced revenue highways budget.

 

9     Solar panels - £500,000 to be spent on retro-fitting solar panels to all council buildings. Funded from remaining invest to save funds (page 71 of MTFS)

 

10  Think Travel - £15,000 ongoing revenue budget for Think Travel Coordinator. Funded fromunallocated top-sliced revenue highways budget.

 

11  Public Health - £50,000 for renewal of the dedicated funding of suicide prevention. Funded from the £2 million in ‘cost pressures in sexual health, substance misuse and a shortfall in early years funding’ (page 60 of MTFS).

 

Labour Group

Cllr Lesley Williams, Leader of the Labour Group, and Cllr Kate Haigh presented the Labour Group’s amendments to the budget (see below). They noted the impact of a decade of austerity on local communities.  The budget cuts had a disproportionately larger impact on vulnerable people.  They expressed particular concern for young people and referred to the withdrawal of youth services, the end of Connexions and cuts to SureStart.  They were disappointed that there was not an underlying commitment to address the climate change emergency.  They called for environmental impact assessments to be undertaken for all areas of the Council’s business. 

 

1     Youth Services – £53,000 continuation of one-off £1,000 per member for youth work. Funded from the Adult Care Reserve.

 

2     Period Poverty - £50,000 for a one-off scheme for period poverty. Funded from the Adult Care Reserve.

 

3     Holiday hunger  – £50,000 for the extended scheme for holiday hunger  This will be funded from  the Adult Care Reserve.

 

4     Library books  - £50,000 to support additional library books across all libraries. Funded from the Adult Care Reserve.

 

5     Wifi for care leavers - £20,000 to be spent on feasibility to provide wifi for care leavers. Funded from the Adult Care Reserve.

 

6     Driving lessons for care leavers – £20,000 to be spent on feasibility to provide driving lessons for care leavers. To be funded from the Adult Care Reserve.

 

7     Cycleways - £100,000 for capital works to cycleways. To be funded from ‘large and miscellaneous schemes 20/21’ capital scheme.

 

Green Group

Cllr Rachel Smith, Leader of the Green Group, and Cllr Eva Ward presented the Green Group’s amendments to the budget (see below). They noted that the Council had declared a climate change emergency on 15 May 2019 but the budget did not balance when it came to climate change commitments. 

 

1     Community Libraries – To increase the grant to community libraries by 25% to £12,500 with total additional costs of £20,000 for the eight community libraries in the county met through a reduction in the highways revenue budget.

 

2     Recycling incentives – £500,000 to be allocated from the Strategic Waste Reserve in 2020/21 to:

(a)  Support one-off investment by district councils in measures to improve recycling rates.

(b)  Investigate the feasibility of installing sorting equipment at Javelin Park to divert recyclable waste from the incinerator’s waste stream.

 

3     Business case development fund  – The budget line ‘business case development fund for grant allocations’ should be reduced by £1 million and not used for any work relating to M5 junction improvements until the case for such an investment has been fully debated in this chamber. The remaining budget of £1 million should be allocated to support business case development for cycle and public transport infrastructure, with funds allocated through a competitive call for proposals from district and parish councils. The budget line should be renamed ‘business case development fund for sustainable transportation options’

 

4     Climate Emergency Action Fund  - The £1 million Climate Action Fund should be:

(c)  Renamed the ‘Climate Emergency Action Fund’, in recognition of the motion passed that recognised a climate emergency, in need of urgent action.

(d)  Increased to £2 million in 2020/21, with the additional spending funded through reduced spending on the business case development fund.

 

5     Moving ‘Climate Emergency Action Fund’ to ongoing funding.  The Climate Emergency Action Fund should be moved from one-off cost increases into ‘cost increases’ in the budget, in recognition that this is described as an ‘initial £1 million’, and that future such spending should be anticipated in 2021/22, funded through reductions in highways and other spending to be identified over 2020/21.

 

6     Amendment to MTFS – Revise paragraph 4 (page 64) to ‘The draft MTFS should be considered in the context of the Council Strategy, Looking to the Future, which sets out the Council’s ambitions, plans and priorities for Gloucestershire and the declaration of climate emergency and climate change strategy, which set out a target of 80% reduction of county-wide carbon emissions by 2030’.

 

 

The meeting was adjourned from 11.40am to 12.20pm to provide an opportunity for the political groups to discuss amendments and reach a common position.

 

 

Debate on decisions on the budget amendments

Following the adjournment, Cllr Hawthorne set out the position of the Conservative Group in relation to the budget amendments put forward by the Liberal Democrat Group, Labour Group and Green Group.

 

Negotiated and accepted

 

Liberal Democrat Group

2    Offer accepted

            Footways - £30,000 for a one-off study in barriers to mobility for people with a disability.

 

3    Counter offer accepted

Highways Local – Increase Highways Local by £5,000 per member (up to £25,000), at a total cost of £265,000. This will be funded from capital (£100,000) and revenue (£165,000).

 

5    Counter offer accepted

      Bus shelters - £50,000 to be spent on bus shelters

 

8    Counter offer accepted

            Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) fund - £50,000

 

10   Offer accepted

       Think Travel - £15,000 ongoing revenue budget for Think Travel Coordinator.

 

12  Offer accepted

Public Health - £50,000 for renewal of dedicated funding of suicide prevention.

 

Labour Group

1    Offer accepted

            Youth Services – £53,000 continuation of one-off £1,000 per member for youth work.

 

2    Counter offer accepted

      Period poverty - £10,000 for a one-off scheme for period poverty

 

3    Counter offer accepted

      Holiday hunger  – £30,000 for the extended scheme for holiday hunger 

 

5    Counter offer accepted

            Digital connectivity for care leavers - £20,000

 

6    Counter offer accepted

      Driving lessons for care leavers – £20,000

 

Green Group

1    Offer accepted

            Community libraries – To increase the grant to each community library by 25% to £12,500 resulting in total additional costs of £20,000 for the eight community libraries in the county.

 

Source of funding for negotiated and accepted amendments:

 

£100,000 from the Capital programme by reducing the corporate property condition works.

 

£15,000 ongoing revenue budget by reducing the budget pressure for increased utility costs.

 

£498,000 one off saving from treasury management as a result of the £10 million early payment of pension contributions.

 

 

Withdrawn

 

Liberal Democrat Group

4    Public transport buses - £200,000 to support the upgrade of at least 10       urban buses to Euro 6 standard. Funded from capital highways budget     – ‘unclassified roads structural maintenance’ (£5.2 million in budget) 

 

Labour Group

4    Library books - £50,000 to support additional library books across all           libraries. Funded from Adult Care Reserve.

 

Green Group

6    Amendment to MTFS – Revise paragraph 4 (page 64) to ‘The draft MTFS should be considered in the context of the Council Strategy,           Looking to the Future, which sets out the Council’s ambitions, plans             and priorities for Gloucestershire and the declaration of climate       emergency and climate change strategy, which set out a target of 80%       reduction of county-wide carbon emissions by 2030.

 

 

Not accepted

 

Liberal Democrat Group

1    Cycleways – £400,000 increase dedicated cycleways spending from          £100,000 to £500,000. Funded from capital highways budget          ‘unclassified structural maintenance’ (£5.2 million in budget)

 

6    Young carers’ travel – £120,000 for free bus travel for young carers             without their cared for individuals. Funded from unallocated top-sliced     revenue highways budget.

 

7     Public transport subsidies - £1,000,000 for public transport subsidies.         Funded from unallocated top-sliced revenue highways budget.

 

8     Solar panels - £500,000 to be spent on retro-fitting solar panels to all council buildings. Funded from remaining invest to save funds (page 71 of MTFS)

 

Labour Group

7                 Cycleways - £100,000 for capital works to cycleways. To be funded             from ‘large and miscellaneous schemes 20/21’ capital scheme.

 

Green Group

2     Recycling incentives – £500,000 should be allocated from the Strategic     Waste Reserve in 2020/21 to:

(a)  Support one-off investment by district councils in measures to improve recycling rates.

(b)  Investigate the feasibility of installing sorting equipment at Javelin Park to divert recyclable waste from the incinerator’s waste stream.

 

3     Business case development fund  – The budget line ‘business case development fund for grant allocations’ should be reduced by £1 million and should not be used for any work relating to M5 junction Improvements until the case for such an investment has been fully debated in this chamber. The remaining budget of £1 million should be allocated to support business case development for cycle and public transport infrastructure, with funds allocated through a competitive call for proposals from district and parish councils. The budget line should be renamed ‘business case development fund for sustainable transportation options’

 

4     Climate Emergency Action Fund  - The £1 million Climate Action Fund should be:

(a)  Renamed the ‘Climate Emergency Action Fund’, in recognition of the motion passed that recognised a climate emergency, in need of urgent action.

(b)  Increased to £2 million in 2020/21, with the additional spending funded through reduced spending on the business case development fund.

 

5     Moving ‘Climate Emergency Action Fund’ to ongoing funding.  The Climate Emergency Action Fund should be moved from one-off cost increases into ‘cost increases’ in the budget, in recognition that this is described as an ‘initial £1 million’, and that future such spending should be anticipated in 2021/22, funded through reductions in highways and other spending to be identified over 2020/21.

 

6     Amendment to MTFS – Revise paragraph 4 (page 64) to ‘The draft MTFS should be considered in the context of the Council Strategy, Looking to the Future, which sets out the Council’s ambitions, plans and priorities for Gloucestershire and the declaration of climate emergency and climate change strategy, which set out a target of 80% reduction of county-wide carbon emissions by 2030.’

 

 

Debate then followed on the amendments that had not been accepted.

 

Liberal Democrat Group amendments

A number of members spoke in support of the amendments.  They believed that there was a lack of commitment to tackling climate change with not accepting the amendments relating to cycleways, public transport and the installation of solar panels. A scrutiny task group had been suggested by the Leader of the Council to look at a greener approach to public transport but they questioned when it would start, how long would it last and when would it make its recommendations. They referred to the £5 billion announced by the Government for buses and cycleways but noted that no timescale had been provided on when it would be available.  Serious concern was expressed that the budget amendment to support young carers had not been accepted.  They said that young carers were one of the most disadvantaged groups and without them the Council would have to cover the cost of providing care.

 

Other members spoke against the amendments.  They referred to the steps that the Council was already taking to address climate change.  They noted that the Council had reduced its carbon footprint in recent years whereas Cheltenham Borough Council had increased its footprint.  They were concerned that, if the budget amendments were approved, there would be a reduction in highways funding which was so critical in maintaining the condition of the network.

 

A member challenged the statement that Cheltenham Borough Council had increased its carbon footprint and did not believe this to be correct. They asked that members check their facts before making such statements in the chamber.

 

On being put to the vote en bloc, the Liberal Democrat Group’s amendments which had not been accepted by the Conservative Administration were not supported.

 

The meeting was adjourned for lunch from 1pm to 1.40pm

 

 

Labour Group amendments

Referring to funding for cycleways, members noted the importance of having schemes ready for when funding became available from the Government.

 

Cllr Hawthorne suggested that a conversation be held with Cllr Richard Boyles, Cabinet Member for Children’s Safeguarding and Early Years, on how wifi could be provided for care leavers.

 

He indicated the Conservative Administration’s support for cycle schemes with £7 million already allocated.  He noted the success of the scheme running alongside the canal south of Gloucester.  He assured members that the resources would be in place to ensure that the Council was able to submit bids for schemes once the new Government funding became available. 

 

On being put to the vote en bloc, the Labour Group’s amendments which had not been accepted by the Conservative Administration were not supported.

 

 

Green Group amendments

Cllr Hawthorne explained that amendment 6 on climate change related to the Council Strategy which had been adopted by Council for three years in February 2019. He said that the Cabinet would take the proposal away and consider what changes could be made to the Council Strategy.  He undertook to do this sooner rather than later.

 

Cllr Rachel Smith questioned why it was necessary to continue to hold a Waste Reserve and she felt that the funds would be better used to support recycling in districts.  She expressed concern that many of the infrastructure schemes in the budget would increase carbon emissions at a time that the Council should be incentivising people not to use cars.  She said that the Council needed to imagine a zero-carbon future that did not require lots more vehicles on the road. 

 

Cllr Eva Ward recognised that attitudes were changing towards climate change. She said that the Council needed to be prepared to adopt radical and bold ideas.  She hoped that the Council’s scrutiny process would provide an avenue to explore some of these ideas.

 

A number of members of the Liberal Democrat Group and the Labour Group indicated general support for the budget amendments put forward by the Green Group.  Whilst they were supportive of providing a business case development fund for sustainable transportation options, they said that they could not support withdrawal of funding for M5 Junction 10.  They noted that the M5 Junction 10 improvement scheme was critical in supporting economic growth and new housing in Cheltenham.  They called on the Chairman to allow members not to vote for the amendments en bloc but to allow a separate vote relating to budget amendment 3 from the Green Group.

 

The Chairman stated that the process for the budget debate had been agreed beforehand and he would not allow any budget amendments to be voted on individually. 

 

Other members noted that the County Council was already providing £4.5 million of support to the Districts to help them recycle more waste.  The rates of recycling in Gloucestershire Districts were already amongst the highest in the country. Referring to the Climate Change Action Fund, they believed that no matter what was included in the budget the Green Group would have asked for more.  They expressed concern at any suggestion that funding should be removed for work associated with the M5 Junction 10 scheme as it was critical to the future economic prosperity of the county.

 

On being put to the vote en bloc, the Green Group’s amendments which had not been accepted by the Conservative Administration were not supported.

           

General debate on the budget 

Members acknowledged the work of officers in preparing the budget and they thanked them for their efforts.

 

Answering a question relating to the level of reserves, Cllr Stowe stated that he could not provide a complete assurance that all risks were covered, but he believed that the Council was in a stronger position than in previous years.  This had been demonstrated by how the Council had been able to cover the overspend in Children’s Services.  Referring to the impact of a Coronavirus pandemic, he said that it would be reasonable to expect emergency funding from the Government should that happen.   

 

Cllr Hawthorne stated that the Conservative Administration was committed to driving forward investment in Gloucestershire that would result in real improvements to services.  He believed that the budget amendments from the other political groups were simply tinkering around the edges of the budget with little regard given to the impact on the areas where the money was being taken from. 

 

On being put to the vote, it was:

 

RESOLVED

1

 

 

To approve the following budget amendments:

 

a)    Footways - £30,000 for a one-off study in barriers to mobility for people with a disability.

b)    Highways Local – One-off increase to Highways Local of £5,000 per member (up to £25,000), at a total cost of £265,000.  This will be funded from capital (£100,000) and revenue (£165,000)

c)    Bus shelters – One-off investment of £50,000

d)    Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) fund  - One-off investment of £50,000

e)    Think Travel - £15,000 ongoing revenue budget for a Think Travel Coordinator.

f)     Public Health - £50,000 for renewal of one-off dedicated funding of suicide prevention.

g)    Youth Services - £53,000 continuation of one-off £1,000 per member for youth work.

h)    Period poverty - £10,000 for a one-off scheme for period poverty

i)     Holiday hunger – One-off investment of £30,000 for the extended scheme for holiday hunger.

j)     Digital connectivity for care leavers – One-off investment of £20,000

k)    Driving lessons for care leavers – One-off investment of £20,000

l)      Community libraries – One-off investment to increase the grant by 25% to £12,500 resulting in total additional costs of £20,000 for the eight community libraries in the county.

2

       To note the overall financial impact of the budget amendments as follows:

£100,000 from the capital programme by reducing corporate property condition works.

 

£15,000 ongoing revenue budget by reducing budget pressure for increased utility costs.

 

£498,000 one-off saving from treasury management as a result of the £10 million early payment of pension contributions. The early payment relates to pension contributions due under the Local Government Pension Scheme for 2020-21, 2021-22 and 2022-23.

 

3

 

That, having considered the additional consultation responses and the Public Sector Equality Duty Due Regard Statement, approval is given to the MTFS and the revenue and capital budgets for 2020-21, council tax for each valuation band, and to issue precepts on each district allocation fund as set out below:

 

 

a)     Gloucestershire County Council 2020-21 Budget:

 

 

£000

 

 

Original 2019-20 budget

429,661

 

 

Additional ring-fenced grant funding now rolled into the base budget

 

10,421

 

 

Removal of 2019-20 one-off investments

-3,103

 

 

Revised 2019-20 budget

436,979

 

 

 

 

 

 

Inflation

2,856

 

 

Cost and spending increases

38,893

 

 

Cost reductions

-10,545

 

 

Total

468,183

 

 

Less:

 

 

 

Settlement funding

Public Health Grant

Improved Better Care Fund

Social Care Grants

New Homes Bonus

Other non-ring fenced grants

Collection Fund Surplus

Reserve transfer

85,023

24,292

19,436

13,985

2,828

5,504

2,123

1,533

 

 

 

 

 

 

Total to be precepted (Council Tax Requirement)

313,459

 

 

 

 

  Taxbase

Total precept

 

 

 

                         Total

£

 

 

Cheltenham

           43,144.50

58,043,100

 

 

Cotswold

           41,817.64

56,258,050

 

 

Forest of Dean

           29,294.75

39,410,773

 

 

Gloucester City

           38,356.60

51,601,848

 

 

Stroud

           45,045.38

60,600,389

 

 

Tewkesbury

           35,340.88

47,544,744

 

 

Total

232,999.75

313,458,904

 

 

b)

 

 

 

 

4

 

 

 

5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That approval is given to the Capital programme set out in Annex 8a of the detailed MTFS, and delegated authority is given to the Section 151 Officer to vary allocations between individual schemes in consultation with the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Change.

 

That the Council approves the Capital Strategy, set out in Annex 7 of the detailed MTFS, the Treasury Management Strategy and the Non-Treasury Investment Strategy for 2020-21, set out in Annex 10 of the detailed MTFS.

 

That approval is given to the Operational Boundary and Authorised Limits of Borrowing, as set out in the Treasury Management Strategy, at Annex 7 in the detailed MTFS as follows:

 

Authorised limit and Operational boundary

2018-19

Limit

£m

2019-20

Limit

£m

2020-21

Limit

£m

2021-22

Limit

£m

2022-23

Limit

£m

Total authorised limit for external debt and other liabilities

380.000

950.000

990.000

950.000

910.000

Split:

External debt        

 

360.862

 

355.375

 

413.349

 

397.637

 

382.189

Other liabilities

  19.138

  594.625

576.651

552.363

527.811

Total operational boundary for external debt

 

360.000

 

930.000

 

970.000

 

880.000

 

890.000

Split:

External debt

 

340.862

 

335.375

 

393.349

 

377.637

 

362.189

Other liabilities

  19.138

  594.625

576.651

552.363

527.811

 

a)    Noting the authorised limit for 2020-21 will be the statutory limit determined under Section 3(1) of the Local Government Act 2003.

b)    That the approval is given to the Prudential Indicators for Treasury Management set out in Annex 10 of the detailed MTFS for

 

 

 

(i)

The maturity structure of borrowings, and

 

 

 

(ii)

The upper limit of principal sums invested for more than 364 days of £200 million.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That the Council approves the schools funding set out in Section G and Annex 9 in the detailed MTFS.

 

 

A motion for a recorded vote had been proposed and seconded by the Chairman and Vice-chairman. 

 

The voting on the substantive motion on the budget was as follows:

 

For (27): Cllrs Carole Allaway Martin, Phil Awford, Matt Babbage, Rob Bird, Richard Boyles, Kevin Cromwell, Andrew Gravells, Terry Hale, Tim Harman, Mark Hawthorne, Stephen Hirst, Dr Andrew Miller, Patrick Molyneux, Nigel Moor, David Norman, Shaun Parsons, Sajid Patel, Loraine Patrick, Alan Preest, Brian Robinson, Vernon Smith, Lynden Stowe, Ray Theodoulou, Brian Tipper, Pam Tracey, Kathy Williams and Will Windsor-Clive

 

Against (2): Cllrs Rachel Smith and Eva Ward

 

Abstentions (20): Cllrs David Brown, Chris Coleman, Dr John Cordwell, Iain Dobie, Ben Evans, Bernard Fisher, Kate Haigh, Joe Harris, Colin Hay, Jeremy Hilton, Paul Hodgkinson, Graham Morgan, Brian Oosthuysen, John Payne, Nigel Robbins, Steve Robinson, Klara Sudbury, Simon Wheeler, Lesley Williams and Suzanne Williams