MD3103 GLA: Mayor budget for 2023-24

1.1    This GLA: Mayor budget builds on, and continues, the Mayor’s ambitions for London’s recovery from the impacts of COVID-19 and the underlying inequalities it has exposed. Londoners are now impacted by the cost-of-living crisis which has become the focus of the deployment of the Mayor’s budget.

1.2    When this budget was prepared in draft in November 2022, only a small increase of £5m in the base level of funding for 2023-24 was anticipated. We know now that final council tax and business rates returns from London boroughs and the City were higher than forecast in the Mayor’s Budget Guidance issued in the summer. This has allowed the Mayor to allocate £134m more additional funding than expected, all of which is one off. Including additional external income, this final budget lays out total revenue funding of £857m available for 2023-24 and a Capital Programme of £1.6bn in the next financial year.

1.3    This budget sets out the contribution the GLA: Mayor budget will make to the pan-London recovery work across a suite of ‘Recovery Foundations’ and ‘Recovery Missions’. Alongside the investment in the GLA Group budget, this budget sets out steps to:

•    make London safer
•    deliver more affordable housing
•    support London’s economic recovery
•    promote a Green New Deal for London
•    provide opportunities for young Londoners.

1.4    As in the 2022-23 budget, we report via ‘Recovery Missions’, ‘Recovery Foundations’ and ‘Core Functions’, as well as via Directorates. Core Functions account for gross spend of £105m and a net spend of £92m. This allows us to allocate £751m revenue funding to supporting London’s recovery directly across eight Recovery Foundations and nine Recovery Missions. 

1.5    We also have a confirmed capital programme of £1.6bn in 2023-24, of which £1.4bn sits in the Affordable Housing Programme and other housing related programmes funded by the government. This substantial capital investment programme is critical to supporting London’s recovery.

1.6    This budget continues to take a different approach to previous budgets on requests for resources to be carried forward from previous financial periods. Essentially, the approval of such requests for core GLA funding will be for exceptional reasons only, with budgets being allocated to services on their capacity to deliver within the financial year. This process is to be enforced at the quarterly performance review meetings throughout the forthcoming year.
 

2.1    The budget sets out the financial envelope for the GLA’s Mayoral operations in 2023-24. The budget will be deployed to meet the Mayor’s priorities for the GLA. The Appendix describes in detail the objectives and outcomes that will be delivered.

2.2    The capital strategy sets out detailed spending plans from 2022-23 to 2026-27 along with aspirations and plans to implement the Mayor’s policies over the longer term to 2041-42.

2.3    The budget also sets out detailed information on the GLA’s staffing establishment.
 

3.1    The assessment of equalities impacts is set out in detail in the appendix. Pursuant to the general public sector equality duty in section 149 of the Equality Act 2010, the Mayor is under a statutory obligation to have due regard to the need to:

•    eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and other conduct prohibited by the Act.
•    advance equality of opportunity between people who share a protected characteristic  and those who do not
•    foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not.

3.2    The Act explains that having due regard to the need to advance equality of opportunity involves:

•    removing or minimising disadvantages suffered by people due to their protected characteristics
•    taking steps to meet the needs of people from protected groups where these are different from the needs of other people
•    encouraging people from protected groups to participate in public life or in other activities where their participation is disproportionately low.

3.3    The Act states that meeting different needs involves taking steps to take account of disabled people's disabilities. It describes fostering good relations as tackling prejudice and promoting understanding between people from different groups. It states that compliance with the duty may involve treating some people more favourably than others.

3.4    The equality duty covers the nine protected characteristics: age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.  Public authorities also need to have due regard to the need to eliminate unlawful discrimination against someone because of their marriage or civil partnership status. This means that the first aim of the duty applies to this characteristic but that the other aims (advancing equality and fostering good relations) do not apply.

3.5    Equalities impacts and the public sector equality duty will continue to be considered when individual programmes and project specifications are developed and approved through the Authority’s decision-making processes.
 

4.1    An assessment of the budget’s environmental impact is also set out in the Green New Deal section of the Appendix.

4.2    The budget setting process has been conducted in accordance with the statutory requirements in the GLA Act 1999. The London Assembly approved without amendment the GLA: Mayoral component budget council tax requirement at its meeting on 23 February 2023.

4.3    It is recognised that all GLA officers have an interest in the budget, as it funds their employment. This budget has been developed in a process overseen by the Corporate Investment Board to ensure it is driven by Mayoral and corporate priorities, rather than those of any individual or team.
 

5.1    Financial issues are integral to this decision and are presented in detail in the appendix. There are risks and uncertainties inherent in programmes reliant on government/external funding and government policy on council tax and business rates in the medium term. The budget development, consultation and approval process has arrived at reserve provisions which are judged to be reasonable, necessary and prudent. This will be kept under review.

6.1    As confirmed at 4.2 above, the budget setting process has been conducted in accordance with the statutory provisions in Part III and Schedule 6 of the GLA Act 1999.  The Mayor is required to approve for the purposes of its publication, and to publish, the GLA: Mayor component budget as soon as practicable (para 11, Schedule 6 of the GLA Act 1999).

7.1    The budget will come into effect at the start of the next financial year on 1 April 2023.