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LOCAL GOVERNMENT FINANCE REVIEW COMMITTEE (LGFRC)

MINUTES OF EIGHTH MEETING: 15 APRIL 2005, ST. ANDREWS HOUSE, EDINBURGH

Present:

Committee
Sir Peter Burt, Chairman
Professor John Baillie, Member
Peter Daniels OBE, Member
Janet Lowe CBE, Member

In Attendance:
Kenneth McKay CBE, Specialist Adviser to the Committee
David Milne, Secretary to the Committee
Dr Stephen Sinclair, Analytical Services Division, Scottish Executive (for Item 3)

1. Minutes of Previous Meeting
1.1 The draft minutes of the meeting on 15 March were agreed.

2. Matters Arising
2.1 None.

3. Oral Evidence, Research and Public Engagement
3.1 The Committee welcomed Stephen Sinclair, who offered suggestions on approaches that the Committee might wish to consider in order to obtain further evidence.
3.2 The Committee felt that it would want to undertake public survey work and Dr Sinclair suggested ways in which this could be taken forward. It was agreed that one option (the purchase of a module of questions within a quarterly Scottish telephone survey package) should be pursued further. Committee members would suggest questions that might feature as part of this module, with particular regard being had to:

• levels of public awareness and understanding of local taxation;
• perceptions on the relationship between services and taxes;
• the extent to which people believe local authorities should be accountable via taxation; and
• whether Council Tax is regarded as a tax or a payment for services.

3.3 The Committee was also interested in undertaking qualitative work, to pursue particular issues in greater depth, possibly through focus groups. This work would follow the quantitative survey but it was agreed that preparatory work on this should begin soon.
3.4 The Committee then discussed how oral evidence sessions should be organised. It was agreed that these should be led by the Committee, rather than a third party facilitator. The purpose would be to probe key stakeholders on particular issues in greater depth than the written consultation allowed. Committee members agreed to come to the next meeting with a list of organisations and individuals to consider inviting to one of these sessions.
3.5 Finally, the Committee expressed interest in obtaining more detailed economic and statistical evidence on particular issues. It was agreed that an Economic Adviser to the Scottish Executive should be invited to the next meeting, to offer suggestions on how the Committee might be able to obtain information it was seeking. Committee members agreed to submit a list of particular issues and questions ahead of the next meeting.

4. Consultation
4.1 The Committee noted that only a small number of known responses were awaited. It discussed responses received to date, and the form of a summary analysis of responses that would be made available publicly in due course.

5. Oral Updates on Discussions
5.1 The Secretary provided Committee members with oral reports of informal discussions he had had with the Corporate Adviser at COSLA and staff at the Welsh Assembly Government, who had recently completed a Council Tax revaluation exercise.

6. Future Work Programme
6.1 The Committee agreed provisional future meeting dates, namely:

• 12 May
• 25 May
• 9 June
• 23 June (AM only)
• 7 July
• 25 & 26 August
• 31 August & 1 September
• 19 September
• 29 September
• 17 October
• 27 & 28 October
• 11 November and
• 25 November.

7. Any Other Business
7.1 None.

Summary of action points:

• Committee members to suggest possible questions for use within a quantitative telephone survey;
• Committee members to come to the next meeting with a list of organisations and individuals to consider inviting to one of these sessions;
• Secretariat to invite an Economic Adviser to the Scottish Executive to the next meeting; and
• Committee members to submit a list of particular issues and questions ahead of the next meeting.

Local Government Finance Review Committee
Secretariat
May 2005