25 February 2021
TUESDAY, 2 FEBRUARY 2021
A meeting of the Finance Committee was held on Tuesday, 2 February 2021.
The open session agenda items focussed on Budget Execution Reports for November and December 2020 and Supplementary Appropriation for the 2020/21 financial year, with presentations by the Deputy Financial Secretary.
The Deputy Financial Secretary explained that the forecast to the end of the financial year indicated an overall underspend of £1.1m, as well as under collection in revenue of £116k, the most significant of which related to Airport Operations and the Children and Adult Social Care Directorate.
Whilst some Directorates were forecasting overspends, others were predicting underspends. The key areas where overspends were forecast were in the Children and Adult Social Care Directorate, Basic Island Pension payments, SHG Pensions payments (due to individuals retiring earlier than anticipated) and the costs of fish processing activities continuing for a longer period of time than anticipated. An overspend was also forecast for medical evacuation costs, with the possibility of those costs being met from the contingency fund being explored.
Some Directorates which were forecasting underspends had requested consideration for those funds being utilised for Capital Expenditure items. The requests included funding for an x-ray machine for the veterinary section of Environment, Natural Resources and Planning Directorate and urgent replacement of medical equipment for the Health Directorate.
Details of Directorates which would require Supplementary Appropriation for the 2020/21 financial year were provided by the Deputy Financial Secretary and corresponded with the main forecast areas of overspends and Capital Expenditure requests. Committee Members were of the opinion that the relevant Directors would be asked to submit written justifications setting out the reasons why over expenditure in their recurrent budgets had occurred.
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SHG
25 February 2021