Agenda and draft minutes

The Lord Mayor welcomed all attendees to the meeting and issued the safety information.

Apologies for absence were heard from Councillors Denyer and Hussain.

To note any declarations of interest from the Councillors.  They are asked to indicate the relevant agenda item, the nature of the interest and in particular whether it is a disclosable pecuniary interest.

Any declarations of interest made at the meeting which is not on the register of interests should be notified to the Monitoring Officer for inclusion.

None received.

To agree the minutes of the previous meeting as a correct record.

On the motion of the Lord Mayor, seconded by Councillor Parsons, it was

RESOLVED: That the minutes of the meeting of the Full Council held on the 9 January 2024 be confirmed as correct record and signed by the Lord Mayor.

To note any announcements from the Lord Mayor

Full Council notes the recent passing of Alderman Alan Tasker, Councillor for Clifton Ward from 1987 to 1995. 

A minute’s silence was held in remembrance of the recent tragic deaths of children in Bristol over the past few weeks. Council offers sincere condolences to the families, friends and communities for their loss at this incredibly difficult time.

Under the Council’s constitution, there is no provision for public forum at the Budget Council meeting. However, in consultation with the Mayor and other party group leaders, the Lord Mayor has determined that public petitions and written statements will be accepted for this meeting on the following basis:

1. Petitions and statements for this meeting must be about the budget/reports included on the agenda.

2. The wording of all petitions and all written statements must be submitted by the deadline of 12 noon on Friday 16 February. Petition details / written statements should be sent to: democratic.services@bristol.gov.uk

3. Questions are not permitted on this occasion.

4. Details of all petitions and statements submitted will be sent to the Lord Mayor, Mayor and all councillors as soon as possible after the above deadline.

5. At the meeting, the Lord Mayor will permit a brief opportunity for petitions to be presented at the start of the meeting (up to 1 minute for each petition), to allow petitioners to formally present their petitions and to confirm the final number of signatures. The Lord Mayor will ask Full Council to receive and formally note all petitions and written statements received.

Public Petitions:

There were no public petitions received.

Public Statements:

The Full Council received and noted the following statements (which were also referred to the Mayor for his consideration and information):

Includes Equalities Impact Assessments.

The budget report from the Resources Scrutiny Commission will be published separately.

The Full Council considered a report setting out the Mayor’s 2024-2025 budget recommendations.

The Lord Mayor drew Members attention to the budget procedure to be followed. At this point, on the motion of the Lord Mayor, it was:

RESOLVED That the relevant standing orders be suspended, noting that the procedure to be followed at this meeting is at variance with the Council’s standing orders.

The Mayor introduced the budget report.

Councillor Cheney, Deputy Mayor for Finance, Governance and Performance seconded the report.

The leaders of each party group, Cllrs Edwards, Renhard, Weston, Clark and Hopkins each responded to the budget proposals.

Councillors Dyer and Gollop presented comments on behalf of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board and Resources Scrutiny Commission.

ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned for 10 minutes

Full Council then considered and debated each of the proposed budget amendments as follows:

Amendment No.1 – Conservative Revenue Amendment 1

1.1 Local Council Tax Reduction Scheme (CTRS). Introduce a flat rate 10% reduction in support for working age households with effect from April 2025

1.2 Cost of CTRS Consultation

1.3 Reserve drawdown from the Corporate Resilience Reserve and replenish in 2025/26

1.4 Increase planning (enforcement) capacity

1.5 Increase General Fund Housing Officer Team

1.6 Increase neighbourhood (enforcement) capacity

1.7 Contribution towards commissioning a new Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) to supplement existing parking restrictions on Durdham Downs.

1.8 Dedicated parks improvements fund ineligible for Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding

1.9 Reduction in bulky waste collection charges

1.10 Create additional supplementary general reserve to cover emerging pressures or new corporate priorities.

Councillor Morris moved the amendment, seconded by Councillor Michallat.

Following debate, upon being put to the vote on both elements of the amendment, the amendment was REJECTED (14 FOR, 49 AGAINST, 0 ABSTENTION)

Amendment No.2 – Conservative Revenue Amendment 2

2.1 Reduce annual budget for the International Affairs team

2.2 Reduce annual budget by proportionally reducing the headcount across each of the three teams: Policy & Strategy, Public Relations & Communications/Consultation

2.3 Reduce annual budget by increasing income and or reducing staffing in Bristol Design (Resources)

2.4 Bring forward to 24/25 planned funding on Theme 1 (supported buses) and reprofile Theme 4 (local transport scheme) to create an additional £3.650m.

2.5 Partially reinstate proposed saving for the Short Care Breaks service

2.6 Partially reinstate the savings aligned to targeted commissioning review for Mentoring/Youth services focused on maximising delivery outcomes through alternative routes, such as application of the Youth Zone

2.7 Remove planned 2024/25 CPI (6.7%) inflationary uplift to allotment charges

2.8 Reprofile and bring forward planned spend on Theme 4 - Local Transport Schemes - into 24/25 over and above that currently planned for (£1m). Prioritsation of spend to be administered by Area Committees

2.9 Increase spend on Theme 1 - Supported Buses in 24/5 (by £1m) and an additional £0.5m spend on Theme 3 - Sustainable Transport Routes and £0.5m for Repairs and Maintenance to infrastructure

2.10 Use balance of transport reprofiling from 27/8 to defer introduction of proposed District car  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.