Agenda item

RESOLVED TO RECOMMEND that:

1)     The Housing Revenue Account Business Plan be approved

2)     revised development programme budgets as set out in Section 8.3 of the Cabinet report be approved

Decision

RESOLVED TO RECOMMEND that:

1)    The Housing Revenue Account Business Plan be approved

2)    The revised development programme budgets as set out in Section 8.3 of the Cabinet report be approved

Corporate objectives

Delivering Affordable Housing

Deputy Monitoring Officer:

A local housing authority must maintain a housing revenue account in accordance with section 74 of the Local Government Act 1989.

Further to section 76 of the 1989 Act, local housing authorities must formulate and implement proposals to ensure that for each financial year the Housing Revenue Account does not show a debit balance.

The annual review provides a robust mechanism to monitor the business plan to ensure that it takes account of changes in government policy, law and the economy and therefore meets the Council’s statutory requirements

S.151 Officer:

There are a number of inflationary assumptions inherent within the Business Plan which are liable to change over the planning period, and which could therefore pose a risk to delivery. These assumptions are kept under constant review, and in the event of any significant changes the model will be updated and the implications reported to Members. An updated report is presented to Members at least annually.

Further borrowing to deliver the programme outlined in this report is not required until 2020/21. The way in which the Council structures its borrowing will influence the amount of funding available in future years, and the borrowing options, together with any implications for the programme, will be presented to Members in advance.

Advice

Councillor Griffiths introduced the report and said the HRA Business Plan is a five year plan that is reviewed annually. She ran through key highlights of the report and said that DBC have a good record of improving homes and have a decent homes standard. On page 163, it states that we only have 96 properties identified as ‘non-decent’. The five year plan for the building programme has been impacted by the 1% rent reduction. This will be finishing this year and rents will increase from April.

F Williamson said the business plan takes into account the additional borrowing capacity. There is a desire to continue to deliver more social rent properties.

J Deane added that the majority of public borrowing comes from the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) and can be accessed at a low rate. PWLB have increased borrowing rates to local authorities by 1% and the government is approaching its cap on borrowing, currently set at £85 billion. Borrowing will become more expensive in the future and there could be a problem with the HRA plan if PWLB borrowing rates go over 4%.

Councillor Elliot asked if the 1% borrowing increase was to stop councils from borrowing for the wrong reasons.

J Deane said this announcements was made last week with no advance notice which could have cause a rush on extra borrowing. They do not look at a business case when lending money.

M Gaynor said the risk factor in developing new build council houses is non-existent. The homes are developed, rent is received on the homes, and building an asset.

Recommendations agreed.