To consider the draft budget report for the Housing Revenue Account (Landlord Service) Business Plan.

That the draft budget proposals for 2013/14 as set out below be approved for consultation with the Overview and Scrutiny Committees and other interested parties and that the Executive:

(a)    notes the Housing Revenue Account’s debt portfolio and interest payments due in 2012/13;

(b)    approves the proposal for no principal debt repayments in the current financial year or during the period of the Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP), namely 2012/13-2016/17;

(c)     approves the creation of a new reserve, to be called the Strategic Reserve;

(d)    approves funding of the HRA’s 2012/13 Capital Programme from the negative HRA Capital Financing Requirement, thereby releasing additional funds for the Sheltered Housing Re-Provision Reserve (SHRR) and Strategic Reserve (SR);

(e)    approves the HRA Draft Revenue Budget for 2013/14 and the Landlord Service Business Plan summary at Appendix A;

(f)      approves the 2013/14 to 2016/17 HRA Capital Programme at Appendix B;

(g)    approves the average rent increase of 4.67% for 2013/14 in line with the national rental increase as per the Government’s Rent Convergence Policy;

(h)     approves the proposed allocation of £0.2m to support financial advice, money management and debt problems for customers.