Redbridge Council meeting tonight on Microsoft Teams open to public

Redbridge Council’s cabinet will meet tonight to discuss the dire impact of coronavirus on the council’s finances.

The meeting, which will take place at 7.15pm and is open to the public, is the council’s second ever fully remote meeting and the first of any kind to take place this month.

Neighbouring Waltham Forest Council has already lost £20million due to the lockdown and predicts it will lose more than double that before the pandemic is over.

So far, the government has granted Redbridge Council more than £7m in emergency funding and it can expect to receive another payout in May.

A council reported prepared for the cabinet states: “Inevitably in the discharge of the council’s role, there is a risk as to whether government funding will be adequate.

“The council must therefore be minded to balance its objectives of supporting and protecting its communities and businesses with the legal obligation upon it to maintain its balanced financial status.

“It is important to remember the financial impact of Covid-19 on the council will not end once the government lift the current period of lockdown.

“With this in mind, the council will need to consider restricting spending outside of services supporting the emergency response… so as to improve financial resilience.”

Before the coronavirus was even a concern, the council had already estimated it would have a £50m gap in its budget over the next five years.

You can view the meeting here