Council needs to find £21m savings
● cess as soon as possible will assist with ensuring they are fully implemented by April 1, 2018.”
A second item on the agenda discusses the local authority’s Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) between 2018 and 2021.
It envisages savings over the next three council budgets of £5.6m, £13.2m, and £3.3m will be required.
The £22.1m to be removed either through reducing spending or increasing income makes up 21.4% of its net budget – more than a fifth.
The report said: “It continues to be a significant challenge to find sufficient savings over the medium term in order to balance the budget.”
The MTFS’s objectives include delivering a balanced and sustainable budget, prioritising spending towards the council’s priority areas, to protect front-line services and vulnerable members of the borough as far as possible, to achieve significant cashable efficiency gains, and to avoid exces- sive council tax increases.
The report added: “The MTFS shows that in order to balance the budget over the medium term, there is a requirement to make significant cost savings.
“In making these savings the council will need to have in mind the objectives of the Medium Term Financial Strategy set out above.
“The grant amounts included in the MTFS are based on the latest information provided by Government.
“Decreases to funding resources will create further budget pressures for the council in delivering its key objectives.
“The MTFS is a key part of the council’s financial planning process, and as such minimises the risk that the council fails to achieve a balanced budget.”
The MTFS and initial budget proposals have been recommended for approval at a meeting at the Municipal Building in Widnes today.