Tim's Council Diary: Clearing the Desk

Sometimes you have to clear the decks before you go away: this is that week.

Limited Cabinet business and a bunch of ward business (93 sent emails in the week - a light one!).

Officers and Cabinet Members are setting themselves up over the coming weeks to have what can only be described as a "wide ranging" budget review in the Autumn, as we seek to turn the financial ship the previous adminsitration left us which forecasts £18m shortfall over the next 4 years, and creates instead a sustainable budget.

With limited remaining reserves, and the expenditure over the last few years funded by using those dwindling reserves, we have a big job to do, but are cautiously optimistic that if we all understand the imprtance of the job, we can do it. Proposals will be discussed with and between all lead officers and Cabinet members between now and October, with those ideas also put to financial scrutiny. The intention thoughout: protect all key services. Do our job more efficiently.

Councils elsewhere in the country are issuing section 114 notices after disastrous financial mis-management (often by previous administrations) indicating they are in real financial distress. We are determined that will not happen here.