Issue - meetings

Cabinet Member: Finance

Forward Plan Ref: 2013/097

Contact: Grey Ley, Financial Manager – Pension Fund Investments Tel: (01865) 323978

Report by Assistant Chief Executive & Chief Finance Officer (CA8).

The report sets out the Treasury Management activity undertaken in the first half of the financial year 2013/14 in compliance with the CIPFA Code of Practice. The report includes Debt and Investment activity, Prudential Indicator monitoring, changes in Strategy, and forecast interest receivable and payable for the financial year.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to note the report, and to RECOMMEND Council to note the Council’s Mid-Term Treasury Management Review 2013/14.

Cabinet had before them a report setting out the Treasury Management activity undertaken in the first half of the financial year 2013/14 in compliance with the CIPFA Code of Practice. The report included Debt and Investment activity, Prudential Indicator monitoring, changes in Strategy, and forecast interest receivable and payable for the financial year.

Cabinet were advised that the Audit & Governance Committee considered the report on Wednesday 20 November and had noted with concern Investec’s performance and that Investec’s annualised return for the first six months of the year was 0.00% compared with a benchmark of 1.59%, and they recommended that the Performance Scrutiny Committee consider the matter further and that Cabinet note the concerns in relation to Investec’s performance as noted in paragraph 29 in the Council’s Mid-Term Treasury Management Review 2013/14.

Councillor Nick Hards, Shadow Cabinet Member for Finance raised 3 points: on annex 4 he queried how helpful the indicators were and whether better indicators were needed; he sought assurances that the LOBO loans were being carefully monitored and on annex 1 referred to the relaxed maturity limit for J. P. Morgan and asked if this was being reconsidered in the light of recent news.

Councillor Fatemian thanked Councillor Hards for his comments and agreed that it would be useful to explore a more helpful index, gave an assurance that the loans referred to were kept under scrutiny and that he would look again at the criteria in relation to J. P. Morgan.

Councillor Fatemian in introducing the contents of the report and addenda highlighted that the level of debt had decreased (paragraph 15) and thanked the Treasury Management Team for their excellent work which had seen them exceed their benchmark (paragraph 27). He noted the concern in relation to Investec as highlighted by the Audit & Governance Committee and that they had asked Performance Scrutiny Committee to look at it.

RESOLVED:             Cabinet noted the report and the concern and action proposed by the Audit & Governance Committee and RECOMMENDED Council to note the Council’s Mid-Term Treasury Management Review 2013/14.