Policy And Resources Committee - 24/02/2020

At a MEETING of the POLICY AND RESOURCES COMMITTEE held at Dundee on 24th February, 2020.

Present:-

BAILIES

COUNCILLORS

Councillor John ALEXANDER, Convener, in the Chair.

The minute of meeting of this Committee of 27th January, 2020 was held as read.

Unless marked thus * all items stand delegated.

I DECLARATION OF INTEREST

No declarations of interest were made.

II BEST VALUE SELF EVALUATION

There was submitted Report No 68-2020 by the Chief Executive seeking approval for the written submission to be provided to Audit Scotland in respect of Dundee City Council's Best Value Self‑Evaluation to support the Best Value Audit which was underway.

The Committee:-

(i) approved the Best Value Self-Evaluation document appended to the report; and

(ii) remitted to the Chief Executive to forward the Best Value Self-Evaluation document to Audit Scotland.

III ANNUAL CITIZEN SURVEY 2019

There was submitted Report No 62-2020 by the Chief Executive summarising the findings from the 2019 Citizen Survey and explaining their use.

The Committee:-

(i) noted the results contained in the report and noted that any issues raised would continue to be addressed as part of the Council's commitment to performance management and continuous improvement;

(ii) noted that the key results for each Local Community Planning Partnership (LCPP) area would be sent to the LCPP Chairs and Communities Officers so they could discuss any particular issues for their localities and follow up with actions as necessary;

(iii) remitted officers to publish the full survey report on the Council's website and make copies available on request as part of the Council's commitment to public performance reporting; and

(iv) remitted officers to invite tenders from market research companies to conduct the annual citizen survey for the next three years.

IV ADOPTION OF THE FAITH COVENANT

There was submitted Report No 59-2020 by the Chief Executive recommending the adoption of the Faith Covenant, a joint commitment by the Council and faith organisations to a set of principles for working together.

The Committee:-

(i) agreed to adopt the Faith Covenant as appended to the report;

(ii) remitted the Chief Executive to invite representatives of faith communities to consider the Covenant through a joint working group of officers and faith representatives; and

(iii) remitted the Chief Executive to report on the agreement of this Covenant and any further recommendations arising from the working group.

V REVIEW OF THE GENDER RECOGNITION REFORM (SCOTLAND) BILL - A CONSULTATION BY THE SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT

On a reference to Article III of the minute of meeting of this Committee of 12th March, 2018, there was submitted Report No 60-2020 by the Chief Executive informing elected members of the consultation to reform the Gender Recognition Act 2004 and proposing a response on behalf of Dundee City Council.

The Committee approved the response, appended to the report, for submission to the Scottish Government by the deadline of 17th March, 2020.

VI LOCAL GOVERNMENT FINANCE SETTLEMENT 2020/2021 AND FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS FOR THE CITY COUNCIL

There was submitted Report No 74-2020 by the Executive Director of Corporate Services advising elected members of the announcement made by the Minister for Public Finance and Digital Economy on 6th February, 2020 in respect of the Local Government Finance Settlement for 2020/2021. The report identified the likely implications for the City Council and set out the current position on the Council's Provisional 2020/2023 Revenue Budget and the 2020/2025 Capital Plan. The Council's long‑term financial strategy was also set out.

The Committee:-

(i) noted the contents of the report;

(ii) noted the Council's Revenue and Capital Funding Allocations for 2020/2021, as announced by the Minister for Public Finance and Digital Economy on 6th February, 2020, and the associated implications;

(iii) noted the package of measures that made up the settlement to be provided to Local Government, as advised by the Minister of Public Finance and Digital Economy in a letter to COSLA dated 6th February, 2020, and as detailed in Section 5 of the report;

(iv) noted the current position on the Council's Provisional 2020/2023 Revenue Budget and 2020/2025 Capital Plan;

(v) noted that the financial information contained in the report would be updated as necessary and included in the Council Tax proposals to be submitted to the Special Policy and Resources Committee on 5th March, 2020;

(iv) agreed the procedures to be followed for setting the 2020/2021 Revenue Budget and Council Tax level, as set out in Section 11 and Appendix 1 of the report; and

(vii) noted the agreed long-term financial strategy as set out in Section 8 of the report.

VII REVENUE MONITORING 2019/2020

There was submitted Report No 40-2020 by the Executive Director of Corporate Services providing an analysis of the 2019/2020 projected revenue outturn as at 31st December, 2019 monitored against the adjusted 2019/2020 Revenue Budget.

The Committee:-

(i) noted that the overall General Fund 2019/2020 projected revenue outturn as at 31st December, 2019 was projecting an overspend of 503,000 against the adjusted 2019/2020 Revenue Budget. The projected overspend was approximately 0.09% of the approved Gross Revenue Expenditure figure of 571,450,000;

(ii) noted that the Housing Revenue Account as at 31st December, 2019 was projecting an underspend of 729,000 against the adjusted HRA 2019/2020 Revenue Budget;

(iii) agreed that the Council Management Team would take every reasonable action to ensure that the 2019/2020 revenue expenditure was below or in line with the adjusted Revenue Budget; and

(iv) instructed the Executive Director of Corporate Services, in conjunction with the Council Management Team, to continue to monitor the Council's 2019/2020 projected revenue outturn and to implement a recovery plan to reduce the projected overspend.

VIII CAPITAL EXPENDITURE MONITORING 2019/2020

There was submitted Report No 51-2020 by the Executive Director of Corporate Services on the latest position regarding the Council's updated Capital Plan 2019/2024.

The Committee noted the contents of the report.

IX TREASURY MANAGEMENT ACTIVITY 2019/2020 (MID-YEAR REVIEW)

There was submitted Report No 8-2020 by the Executive Director of Corporate Services reviewing the Treasury Management activities for the period 1st April to 30th September, 2019.

The Committee noted the information contained in the report.

X CAPITAL PLAN 2020/2025 - GENERAL SERVICES AND HOUSING HRA

On a reference to Article X of the minute of meeting of this Committee of 19th August, 2019, there was submitted Report No 61-2020 by the Executive Director of Corporate Services providing elected members with the background information and details of the Council's General Services and the Housing HRA Capital Plan for the five year period 2020/2025.

The Committee:-

(i) approved the Council's General Services and Housing HRA Capital Plan for 2020/2025 as appended to the report;

(ii) noted the gross capital expenditure investment of 375m over the next five years;

(iii) noted the updated position for the 2019/2020 projected capital expenditure programmes, as at 31st December, 2019; and

(iv) approved the Prudential Indicators for the Capital Plan 2020/2025, as detailed in Appendix 2 of the report, and noted that these Indicators demonstrated that the Capital Plan 2020/2025 was affordable, prudent and sustainable.

XI TENDERS RECEIVED - ICE RESURFACER

There was submitted Report No 76-2020 by the Executive Director of Corporate Services detailing tenders received and requesting a decision on acceptance thereof.

The Committee agreed to accept the lowest tender from Marshalls International Ltd in the sum of 88,025, together with allowances of 3,258.23, giving a total expenditure of 91,283.23.

John ALEXANDER, Convener.