Issue - meetings

Cabinet Member: Finance

Forward Plan Ref: 2021/126

Contact: Kathy Wilcox, Head of Financial Strategy Tel: 07788 302163

Report by Director of Finance (CA7).

Finance report on capital spending against budget allocations, including any necessary capital programme approvals.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

a)            Agree the increase in the budget for the following schemes:

·      £1.415m for the Lord Williams’s School, Thame expansion by 1 form entry funded from basic need programme contingency.

·      £1.198m increase to the Kennington Bridge Maintenance Scheme funded from capital programme contingency.

b)           Approve the updated Capital Programme at Annex 2.

Recommendations agreed

Cabinet considered a finance report on capital spending against budget allocations, including any necessary capital programme approvals.

Councillor David Bartholomew, Shadow Cabinet Member for Finance, drew attention to the following:

·         He hoped that the reduced spending on the Kennington Bridge due to revised timing of the detailed design stage did not indicate slippage on this important project.

·         He noted the cap of £35m placed on spending on the Science Transit Phase 2 Scheme by the Department for Transport and asked if this meant that the Council was liable for any overspend on the project.

·         He welcomed the provision by the Department of funding towards the provision of electric charging points in district council car parks across the county.

Councillor Calum Miller responded that he was not in a position to answer the question about liability for overspend on the Science Transit Scheme but would forward information on that.  He also suggested meeting with Councillor Bartholomew to discuss ways of limiting the Council’s liability on Kennington Bridge.

Councillor Miller highlighted the decrease in the latest outturn forecast spend for the capital programme for 2021/22 of £29.2m to £205.3m and the decrease in the total ten-year capital programme of £25.1m to £1,345.8m.  He moved the recommendations and they were agreed,

RESOLVED to:

a)            Agree the increase in the budget for the following schemes:

·      £1.415m for the Lord Williams’s School, Thame expansion by 1 form entry funded from basic need programme contingency.

·      £1.198m increase to the Kennington Bridge Maintenance Scheme funded from capital programme contingency.

b)           Approve the updated Capital Programme at Annex 2.