Agenda and decisions

As part of this item a presentation will be given on Corporate Risk 7.2 (If departments are unable to promptly recruit and retain staff with the right skills and values and in the numbers required to fill the roles needed, then the required/expected level and standard of service may not be delivered, and some services will be over reliant on the use of agency staff resulting in budget overspends and lower service delivery).

RESOLVED:

(a)    That the current status of the strategic risks facing the County Council be approved;

(b)    That at the next meeting of the Committee a presentation be provided on Corporate Risk B (If the implications of the Russian invasion of Ukraine are sustained, then the County Council and Leicestershire as a whole will be significantly impacted);

(c)    That the update regarding mitigating the risk of fraud be noted;

(d)    That further information on the reasons staff give for leaving the Council be provided to Committee members outside of the meeting;

(e)    That the Director of Corporate Resources be requested to consider whether the risks around not securing a County Deal or securing a lower level deal than anticipated need including on the Corporate Risk Register.

RESOLVED:

(a)    That the report presenting the indicative External Audit Plan and Audit Risk Assessment 2021/22 for the Council and its Pension Fund be noted;

(b)    That further information on future plans and the governance proposals around managing the Freeport be presented at a future meeting.

RESOLVED:

(a)    That the Provisional Draft Annual Governance Statement for 2021/22 be supported;

(b)    That the two significant governance issues reported in the provisional draft Annual Governance Statement for 2021/22 be noted;

(c)    That it be noted that the provisional draft AGS 2021/22 will be subject to amendments and that a final draft AGS 2021/22 will be circulated to Committee members before it is published with the draft Statement of Accounts before the end of June;

(d)    That it be noted that the Annual Governance Statement, which may be subject to such changes as are required by the Code of Practice on Local Authority Accounting, has been prepared in accordance with best practice;

(e)    That officers be requested to consider whether it is appropriate to include the vision and outcome for Affordable and Quality Homes in Leicestershire in the Annual Governance Statement given that housing is not the responsibility of the County Council;

(f)     That the final cost of remedial work being undertaken in regard to Firs Farm be provided to Committee members when available.

RESOLVED:

That the Committee notes that the changes made to the Local Code of Corporate Governance – April 2022 (attached as an Appendix to the report) are not material, but necessary to ensure the Code is up to date and relevant and that the changes will therefore be approved by the Directors of Corporate Resources and Law and Governance in accordance with their delegated powers.

RESOLVED:

(a)    That the proposed way forward to add ‘Bank Risk Sharing Funds’ to the list of acceptable investments included within in the Annual Investment Strategy and the investment of £10m from the Corporate Asset Investment Fund into Christofferson Robb and Company’s Capital Relief Fund 5 be supported;

(b)    That the comments now made be submitted to the Cabinet for consideration at its meeting in June 2022;

(c)    That fee information relating to the investment of £10m from the Council’s Corporate Asset Investment Fund into Christofferson Robb and Company’s Capital Relief Fund 5 be provided to Committee members outside of the meeting.

RESOLVED:

That the actions taken in respect of treasury management for the quarter ending 31 March 2022 be noted.

RESOLVED:

(a)    That the Annual Treasury Management Report for 2021/22 be noted;

(b)    That it be noted that the Annual Treasury Management Report for 2021/22 will be submitted to the Cabinet for consideration at its meeting in June 2022.

RESOLVED:

(a)   That the contents of the Internal Audit Service Progress and Plan Report be noted;

(b)   That once the revised CIPFA practical guidance for audit committees for local authorities and the Police is published a briefing be arranged for Committee members to consider the revised guidance and any implications for the Corporate Governance Committee.

RESOLVED:

(a)    That the Internal Audit Service Annual Report for 2021-22 be noted;

(b)    That the Internal Audit Service Annual Report for 2021-22 be circulated to all members of the County Council for information.

The next meeting is scheduled to be held on Friday 23^rd September at 2.00pm.