REPORT OF THE

GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE

PART I

AMENDMENT TO FINANCIAL REGULATIONS

1. The Committee has considered amendments to Financial Regulations, which aim to ensure that the County Council's rules for treasury management comply with the Code of Practice published by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA). That Code has recently been updated and the changes set out in the recommendation below aim to ensure that the County Council's relevant financial regulations correspond to the CIPFA model. One other amendment is recommended to ensure that the County Council can comply with the Money Laundering Regulations 2003, to minimise the risk of the County Council or its officers becoming unwittingly involved in the movement of illegally generated funds through routine transactions.

2. This report supports Aim 5 of the Corporate Strategy - Improving Services - by ensuring that the County Council's financial regulations and procedures are up to date and comply with best practice.

RECOMMENDATION

1 That approval be given to the adoption of revised Financial Regulations 4.13, 4.14, 4.15, 4.16 and 5.8 and the deletion of existing Financial Regulations 4.17 and 4.18, as set out below

FR 4.13. The County Council has adopted the key recommendations of CIPFA's Treasury Management in the Public Services: Code of Practice (the Code), as described in Section 4 of that Code.

FR 4.14. Accordingly, the County Council will create and maintain, as the cornerstones for effective treasury management:

· a treasury management policy statement, stating the policies and objectives of its treasury management activities


· suitable treasury management policies (TMPs) setting out the manner in which the organisation will seek to achieve those policies and objectives and prescribing how it will manage and control those activities.


FR 4.15. The County Council's Cabinet will receive reports on its treasury management policies, practices and activities, including an annual debt management and investment strategy and plan in advance of the year, and an annual report after its close, in the form prescribed in its TMPs. The annual investment strategy requires the approval of the full County Council.

FR 4.16. The County Council delegates responsibility for the implementation and monitoring of its treasury management policies and practices to the Cabinet, and for the execution and administration of treasury management decisions to the County Treasurer, who will act in accordance with the council's policy statement and TMPs and CIPFA's Standard of Professional Practice on Treasury Management.

FR 5.8 - addition


· in accordance with advice received from Customs and Excise, the County Council will not accept settlement in cash of any transaction above the value of 15,000 euros equivalent (approximately £10,000).

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