Agenda item

The Leader made the following speech:

“Members, I begin by paying tribute to a former Councillor Brenda Smith, who died recently. Councillor Smith was elected as a Councillor to represent Egerton Ward at a by-election on 28 February 2002 and she served until 2008, when she moved away from the area. She was best known for her work with Residents Action Group Egerton and her role in securing new play equipment and the building of the Cove. I would like to echo the words of Matthew O’Callaghan and agree that she was an ‘outstanding Councillor and true champion of the people of Egerton Ward.’ On behalf of the Council I offer our sincere condolences to her family and friends.

I want to now reflect on the events of yesterday. Firstly, the publication of the finance settlement which will inform the development of our budget. This sets out the funding we will receive from central government for the next year with some principles also announced for the following year. 

Whilst nationally this be the largest cash settlement local government has received for many years, for district councils the increase is only 5%, which is way below current levels of inflation and does not account for lost income streams still impacted by covid. 

In reality, the total of the various grants received by MBC is actually £7k less than that received in 2022/23 and £37k less than that assumed in the draft budget which is disappointing. In better news, the finance team are still assessing the level of business rates we will be able to retain, but we expect this to be an increase over the amount assumed in the draft budget, although not enough to achieve a balanced budget without the need to draw on reserves. As a council we will still need to consider the savings that will be necessary to bring the budget into balance in a measured way.

Scrutiny will be holding a workshop in early January, followed by the more formal scrutiny meeting, prior to consideration by Cabinet and Budget Council in February. I look forward to working with all Members as we navigate this difficult time for the sector. 

As you’ll be aware, one of the ways we were hoping to manage our financial sustainability was through the establishment of a strategic partnership with Harborough District Council. Following a comprehensive debate on the subject last night, their Council chose, by 1 vote, to reject the recommendation from their Cabinet. This is extremely disappointing as it means we will no longer be able to access the considerable benefits that would have been available to us, our teams and our communities, had the partnership been established. As you will appreciate, based on the decision taken by Harborough, there was no option but to withdraw the item from tonight’s agenda. 

Having said that, I continue to believe that the case for working more closely with Harborough remains, and whilst this is a setback and a missed opportunity, it doesn’t have to be a fatal blow to our aspirations. Building on the work done so far, and the strong relationships we have built, we will continue to explore opportunities with them, like the CCTV item on our agenda this evening. Clearly however, without the partnership framework in place, these opportunities will be more limited than would otherwise have been possible,

Since our last meeting, our £1.2m UK Shared Prosperity Fund Investment Plan has been approved by government. This is fantastic news and shows our plan, which had wide support from stakeholders, is credible and will deliver for our residents on cost of living, jobs and prosperity.

On Friday we had the fantastic news that despite the increasing costs, and some uncertainty over recent months, the MMDR north and east sections will go ahead, with work starting in March. This remains a massive achievement and will be huge for our communities and our economy. We will continue to work with the County Council to ensure the southern section of the MMDR can come forward at the earliest opportunity too.

The road will deliver the homes and jobs that Melton needs, and at a time when more homes are being built in Melton than ever before, we await details on the recent ministerial statements on planning reform and housing targets. We would obviously support measures which give more power to local communities, but any changes must not choke off delivery or stifle growth. We will review the details of any proposals carefully and update members when more details are published. 

After another busy year it is fitting that I reflect on all the good work which has been done. As part of this, I am delighted to confirm that we are in the process of making a submission to the prestigious LGC Awards 2023, in the category of Most Improved Council, and I wanted to share some of the key parts of our submission with you.

It’s worth reflecting on the challenges this Council was facing when I became Leader and was joined by the Chief Executive a few months later. We had no corporate oversight of how we were performing, we had no scrutiny function, no clarity on how policy was developed, we had no housing officers, no enforcement capability, no legal team, no democratic services team, no regeneration team, no assets team. We were dysfunctional, with too few resources, devoted to too many priorities, and were sleep walking into some major failures. 

It is easy to forget how far we have come over the last few years. We are not perfect, and nor will we ever be, but we are much improved and unrecognisable from where we were. That is because we made the changes necessary, built a fantastic team of officers, worked well together as members, and at key times, had the courage to make bold decisions, even when there were those who would still criticise us. 

The improvements made are even more impressive when you consider that as a small district we have far fewer resources than the vast majority of other councils, and yet we continue to punch above our weight time and time again.

• The move to Cabinet and Scrutiny model, and adoption of a constitution in 2019 has created the platform for all the good work since. Roles have been clarified and there is far greater focus and accountability. 
• Our housing service was in a mess, but the Housing Improvement Plan, also agreed in 2019, has delivered a huge transformation, and ensures we are ready for the regulatory changes which are to come. We can now look forward, listening to our tenants, investing in their homes, and with the highest levels of audit assurance possible, demonstrate we are delivering our priorities.
• We worked tirelessly during the pandemic, saving lives and protecting livelihoods, leading the covid response and recovery, and again, despite the unprecedented challenge, our efforts received the highest level of assurance possible.
• On the MMDR, we showed incredible resolve to negotiate a pioneering infrastructure funding deal which has helped secure the relief road, without jeopardising our financial future. This is transformational for this borough, and is something that many thought would never happen. 
• We have also influenced and worked positively with our health partners, who are now committed to work with us to deliver the second GP surgery for Melton. 
• On growth, with our partners, we launched the Stockyard at the Cattle Market, and have supported over 60 small businesses through the Food Enterprise Centre, as well as submitted an ambitious Levelling Up Fund bid to secure more investment for our town. 
• More homes have been built in Melton in the last year than at any time in the last 30 years, and the big improvements we made in land charges saw us shortlisted for the national awards for excellence. 
• We created an assets team who are actively managing our portfolio, generating capital receipts for things we no longer need, so they can be invested in those that we do, as part of our asset development programme.
• We’ve built enforcement capacity, using powers to solve community issues not previously used in Melton; including Community Protection Notices, Closure Orders and securing prosecutions which have gained us international recognition and commendations from the Chief Executive of the Food Standards Agency.
• We demonstrated our continuing compassion and support to the most vulnerable, being the first council in Leicestershire to welcome Afghan refugees who supported our armed forces, as well as those fleeing from Ukraine. 
• On cost of living, we have a plan in place and quickly distributed energy rebate payments and have supported more of our residents to gain access to Household Support Payments than the other 6 districts in Leicestershire combined. The cost of living crisis will be felt for some time, and we will continue to do all we can to support our residents. 
• We were the first Council in the East Midlands to achieved Disability Confident Leader status and one of only 3 employers in Leicestershire to secure the Gold award in the Armed Forces Employer Recognition Scheme this year. 
• And in another mark of our progress, resident satisfaction is up across the board compared to 2019, showing the things we are doing are appreciated by those we serve.

There is no complacency of course and we will continue to be ambitious to do more, with the strong foundations we have built being so important to ensuring we can deliver. Today’s agenda is an example of that, whether that is upgrading our CCTV and replacing cameras that are 26 years old or considering our housing asset management plan which is another tangible demonstration of the progress we’ve made. I look forward to discussing these and the other items on tonight’s agenda during the course of the meeting.

I am very proud of all we do at Melton and want us to showcase our achievements at the LGC Awards next year. I hope all members will join with me in supporting our submissions and would like to thank members and officers for all their hard work in moving this council so far forward.”