Issue - meetings

A report from the Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Finance and Growth is attached.

Councillor Eamonn O’Brien, the Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Finance and Growth, presented the report which outlined the background, current scheme, context of overall Welfare Reform and recommendations for delivering a local scheme of Council Tax Support with effect from April 2021.

Decision:

That Cabinet approves the following recommendations for onward approval by Full Council:

·       the scheme continues in its current form for the year 2021/22;

·       the current disregard of all War Widow’s/Widower’s Pension or War Disablement Pension is continued;

·       the performance of the scheme continues to be closely monitored and will be reviewed and amended as appropriate on an annual basis.

Reasons for the decision:

Each year local authorities are required to consider their Council Tax Support Scheme as part of the budget setting process.

Other options considered and rejected:

The Council, like most Authorities, is experiencing significant financial pressures due to funding reductions in previous years further impacted by the Covid pandemic. The opportunity to provide additional funding is therefore limited and would create a cost pressure that would need to be managed elsewhere within the Council’s budget.