7 THE EFFECTS OF COVID-19 ON THE 2020/21 BUDGET PDF 386 KB
Cyflwynwyd gan: Cyng. / Cllr Ioan Thomas
Decision:
To
note the possible funding gap in the 2020/21 budget and support the efforts of
the Leader and officials to ensure appropriate funding options from the Welsh
Government.
Owing
to the financial losses in the first year (2019/20) of Byw'n Iach as a result
of Covid-19, and the presumption that there will be further cuts which will continue
in 2020/21 for the same reason, that the Cabinet confirm
1.
That it is willing to provide the necessary financial support to sustain
the services of Cwmni Byw'n Iach initially until the end of the 2020/21
financial year.
2.
To authorise the Head of Finance Department in consultation with the
Head of Legal Services and the Head of Economy and Community Department and in
accordance with the provision in the Agreement with Cwmni Byw'n Iach (Schedule
4) to provide a letter of assurance to the company and agree on conditions and
the content of the support.
3.
That the Cabinet receives a specific report on the arrangements as part
of reports to review the Council's budgets.
Minutes:
The report was submitted by Cllr Ioan Thomas.
DECISION
To note the possible
funding gap in the 2020/21 budget and support
the efforts of the Leader and officials to ensure appropriate funding options from the Welsh Government.
Due to the financial losses in the first year
(2019/20) of Byw'n Iach as a result of Covid-19, and the presumption that there will
be further losses which will continue
in 2020/21 for the same reason, that
the Cabinet confirms
1. That it is willing to provide the necessary financial support to sustain the services of Cwmni
Byw'n Iach initially until
the end of the 2020/21 financial
year.
2. To
authorise the Head of
Finance Department in consultation with the Head of Legal Services and the Head of Economy and Community
Department and in accordance with
the provision in the Agreement with Cwmni Byw'n Iach
(Schedule 4) to provide a letter
of assurance to the company
and agree on conditions and
the content of the support.
3. That the Cabinet receives a specific report on the arrangements as part of reports to review the Council's budgets.
DISCUSSION
The
report was submitted, noting that the situation was vulnerable as income had reduced and expenditure had increased during the crisis. It was added that this
could be seen in every local
authority.
The
Head of Finance noted that the British Government had offered to part-fund the loss in income,
along with the additional costs, for local authorities
in England. It was expressed that various Welsh Government departments were in discussions
and it was hoped that an announcement
would be made soon. It was reiterated that the Council's loss of income for three
months was approximately
£5m, and if the crisis situation continued, the loss of income would amount
to approximately £10m over six months. It was emphasised that the loss was dependent on the impact of the restrictions during the period.
It
was expressed that discussions continued with Welsh Government, and that it was difficult for the Council to plan financially until information had been received from
Government about the expected grant amount, and the length of time that the crisis
would continue.
A discussion was held on the financial
position of Byw'n Iach as a result
of the restrictions of the Covid-19 crisis, in 2019/20 and 2020/21, and it was resolved that the Council should
offer them support as a result of the impact of the crisis.
Observations arising
from the discussion
¾ It was noted
that there was a need to call on Welsh Government to step up and support the Council to protects its residents.
¾ It was emphasised
that this period had shown the Council's ability to act quickly to look after its residents,
and had highlighted the importance of the provider services.
Awdur: Dafydd L Edwards and Ffion Madog Evans