Agenda item

To receive the information and consider any risks arising from the strategy before it is presented to the full Council for adoption.

DECISION:

·         To accept the report and to note the information and relevant risks.

·         To support the Cabinet Member for Finance's intention to submit the Strategy to the Full Council for approval on 7 March 2024.

The Cabinet Member took the opportunity to thank the Members who had attended the meeting with Arlingclose on 07-02-24 and highlighted that Arlingclose had stated that 'Gwynedd were going in the right direction'.

Submitted – a report by the Investment Manager providing an overview of the Council's Capital and treasury management activity, and as noted above, the Members had received a presentation from the financial advisers, Arlingclose, explaining the detail behind the strategy in a comprehensive and easily understood manner.

The Manager referred to the capital activities and highlighted that the Council intended to make capital spending of £90.2 million in 24/25, with the main schemes listed in the report, along with the funding sources. It was noted that the external resources were mainly from the Welsh Government and our own resources were the funds. The remainder of the funding came from loans that would be repaid over a number of years, normally from revenue resources or from income from the sale of assets, which was consistent with the actions of previous years. This meant that the indicator – the Council's Capital Funding Requirement, would be £190.5 million by the end of the 24/25 financial year, namely the level below which the Council's long-term borrowing should remain.

In the context of the Borrowing Strategy, it had been highlighted recently that there had been no long-term borrowing requirement, only a low-cost, short-term requirement over the end of the financial year; this would continue with no long-term borrowing anticipated for Cyngor Gwynedd activities, and that the Council's debt would remain below the Capital Funding Requirement.

The Manager referred to the Liability Benchmark which was now reported to the Committee on a quarterly basis. The Council expected its borrowing to remain above its liability benchmark up until 2027 since the Council had a high level of reserves.

With regard to the Investment Strategy, it was noted that the Council's policy was to prioritise security and liquidity over yield in order to ensure that money was available to pay for the Council's services. She noted that sums were being held continually to ensure ongoing liquidity – it was considered that maintaining liquidity and security was a priority at present in a period of cuts and inflation.

Reference was made to the risk management and governance, together with details of the Council's long-term liabilities, e.g. to cover the deficit in the Pension Fund, and the impact of the funding costs on cash flow where the percentage appeared low and fairly consistent with previous years. It was also confirmed that officers had the relevant knowledge and skills, and that Arlingclose continued to provide a financial advisory service to the Council.

The members expressed their gratitude for the report

RESOLVED:

·         To accept the report and to note the information and relevant risks

·         To support the Cabinet Member for Finance's intention to submit the Strategy to the Full Council for approval on 7 March 2024