Agenda item

Carried forward from 3 July Council meeting

With reference to Article 5 of the minute of meeting of the Finance and Resources Committee of 8 May 2024, the Council had before it a report by the Executive Director of Corporate Services which provided details of the full year actual financial position of the Council against budget for the financial year 2023/24, and which had been referred to it by four members of the Committee in accordance with Standing Order 34.1.

The report recommended:-

that the Finance and Resources Committee -

(a)           note the unaudited final outturn position for the financial year 2023/24 as detailed in Appendix 1;

(b)           note that the General Fund has recorded a balanced operational position for the year 2023/24. The uncommitted General Fund reserve remains in line with the approved Reserves Policy;

(c)           note that the Housing Revenue Account has recorded a deficit of £1.525m for the year, and this will have to be funded from the uncommitted HRA reserve;

(d)           note that the Common Good has recorded an operating surplus of £1.814m for the year, which is better than the approved use of cash reserves. After investment valuation changes and capital receipts are included, cash balances increased by £1.614m and remain in line with recommended levels;

(e)           approve the various transfers for 2023/24, between Council Reserves and Earmarked sums for the General Fund, Housing Revenue Account, Common Good and Statutory Funds as of 31 March 2024, as detailed in Appendix 1;

(f)             approve the reprofiling of the 2024/25 - 2027/28 capital programmes to take account of the year end position and that the outcome of this is incorporated into the 2024/25 Quarter 1 reporting; and

(g)           note that the unaudited Annual Accounts for 2023/25 will be presented to Audit, Risk and Scrutiny Committee on 9 May 2024, including the Annual Governance Statement and Remuneration Report for the year.

The Finance and Resources Committee resolved:-

          to approve the recommendations contained within the report.

Councillor McLellan moved, seconded by Councillor Bouse:-

          That the Council -

(1)       approve the recommendations contained within the report;

(2)       note that following the meeting of the Finance and Resources Committee of 4 May 2024, the Convener and Vice Convener wrote to UCAN to make them aware that Aberdeen City Council’s External Funding Team would be able to assist them with any funding applications; and

(3)       understand that UCAN had since engaged with the External Funding Team to assist them in securing funding of £2.5m towards a urological Rapid Diagnostic Centre.

Councillor Brooks moved as an amendment, seconded by Councillor Malik:-

          That the Council -

(1)       note the changes in balances of uncommitted funds from Q4 to Q1 reporting, and the cash balances reported at both periods;

(2)       note that on 25 April UCAN (Scottish Charity SC036638, and a company limited by guarantee with the Registrar of Companies as UCAN (Grampian), company number 286333) launched a second fundraising round to support the next chapter of its support for its ongoing provision of care for urological related cancers affecting those in the NHS Grampian catchment area and further afield;

(3)       note that per the Scottish Public Health Observatory data, prostate cancer accounts for 22.6% of all cancers diagnosed in men and further that prostate cancer is the second most common cause of death from cancer in men;

(4)       commend the work of the staff and volunteers of UCAN;

(5)       having considered the Public Sector Equality Duty, agree to commit in principle an amount of £250,000 from cash balances referred to in point (1) of this amendment;

(6)       instruct the Chief Officer - Finance to carry out due diligence in line with the Council’s Following the Public Pound Policy, and where satisfied, following consultation with all Political Group Leaders, make payment to UCAN as set out in point (5); and

(7)       instruct the Chief Executive to write to Council Chief Executives in Aberdeenshire, Moray, Highland, Orkney, Shetland and Western Isles confirming our grant and asking them to contribute to UCAN fundraising efforts recognising that cancer does not distinguish between local authority boundaries.

On a division, there voted:-

For the motion  (22)  -  Lord Provost; Depute Provost; and Councillors Al-Samarai, Allard, Bouse, Hazel Cameron, Clark, Cooke, Copland, Cormie, Davidson, Fairfull, Greig, Henrickson, Hutchison, MacGregor, McLellan, McRae, Mennie, Nicoll, Radley and van Sweeden.

For the amendment  (16)  -  Councillors Ali, Blake, Bonsell, Brooks, Crockett, Farquhar, Graham, Kusznir, Lawrence, Macdonald, McLeod, Malik, Massey, Thomson, Tissera and Watson.

Absent from the division  (4)  -  Councillors Alphonse, Boulton, Grant and Yuill.

The Council resolved:-

to adopt the motion.