A date has been set for an extraordinary meeting which will see Copeland Council set out its financial action plan for the Government.
Historic financial issues at Copeland Borough Council have led the authority to request financial support from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities, to help balance the books in 2021-22 and 2022-23.
Copeland’s request for assistance led to a report on its financial situation by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy, commissioned by the Government.
The report revealed that Copeland could be heading for effective bankruptcy (a Section 141 notice) without significant assistance.
It was accompanied by a letter from Kemi Badenoch MP, Minister for Levelling Up, asking the council’s leadership what measures it will take to address the situation and what assistance will be needed from Government.
Copeland’s response will be set out at an extraordinary meeting of the council on Thursday January 13.
The meeting has been formally request by 11 of Copeland’s councillors, made up of the Conservative leadership and members of the Labour group.
Requests were made by Copeland’s executive: Mayor of Copeland Mike Starkie, councillors David Moore, Andy Pratt, James Date and Brian O’Kane.
A call for the meeting was also submitted by members of the council’s Labour group: its leader Michael McVeigh and councillors Sam Pollen, Joseph Ghayouba, Jackie Bowman, Joan Hully and Linda Jones-Bulman.
The meeting will discuss the CIPFA report and the ministerial response.
Labour has made a further request, asking that audit and assurance boss Grant Thornton and council auditors are invited.
Mayor of Copeland Mike Starkie has said that the financial position is being exaggerated and blamed the previous administration for the issues, pointing to “serious accounting errors,” £1 million of unrecovered debt and “failing to make provision for the Sellafield rates appeal” which cost the council £30 million.
But Labour leader Michael McVeigh said that the administration was a victim of circumstance.
He said: “When we first were notified by then chief executive Paul Walker of the support grant from Government being taken, the austerity position coming online and then we had lost the Sellafield rate appeal, he’s said we’re heading for serious financial issues and then the rest is history.
“Whichever way you dress it up, when we lost the rates appeal and we had the austerity, our officers have done remarkable work with the limited finances they had.”
Labour has said that the council’s current financial position is the responsibility of the mayor who has been in power since 2015. But Mr Starkie said: “I have addressed it, going back to when I took over.
“The council didn’t have a single accountant, they had 10 chief executive financial officers in 10 years. The whole place was in a complete mess and we’ve addressed it by balancing the budget for the seventh consecutive year.”
Cllr McVeigh said that there was “real uncertainty (about) exactly what is the auditor going to tell us from his last sign off.”
Councillors were set to hear from the auditor at a meeting of the audit committee on December 20 but it was cancelled.
The extraordinary meeting of the council will be staged at The Copeland Centre in Whitehaven from Thursday January 13.
