THURROCK Council's acting chief executive warned councillors they face 'some extremely difficult choices' as the depth of the borough's financial plight was once again outlined at an extraordinary meeting of the authority's full council last night (Monday, 9 January).

The meeting was called to formally acknowledge the submission of a Section 114 order to the government – which effectively means the council is bankrupt and cannot meet its running costs.

CEO Ian Wake told members: "The issuing of a Section 114 report is an incredibly serious matter and urgent ongoing action is required to return the council to a path of financial sustainability.

"The failure of the council's investment strategy and wider financial and organisational governance has culminated in a requirement to write down £275m relating to council investments, an overall 2022/23 projected in year deficit of £452m and a predicted deficit in 2023/24 of £184m as set out in the Acting Director of Finance's S114 report.

"The scale of the deficit faced by the council is unprecedented and will require both immediate and ongoing concerted action by officers and members over many years in order to return the council to a path of financial and operational sustainability and recovery.

"The scale of that challenge is enormous.

"Recovery will require a collective ownership of the problem, a laser-like focus of the entire organisation on recovery, and some extremely difficult choices."

Ian Wake (standing) and Jonathan Wilson (front sitting) spoke to members.

The council's acting senior finance officer, Jonathan Wilson also briefed members, saying: "The council will need to demonstrate to government that it is taking all action possible to improve the financial position.

"This is in addition to seeking further financial support.

"Thurrock Council will not have the resources available to meet its expenditure. The council will need to seek exceptional financial support from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities for the financial year 2022/23 and to support budget setting for 2023/24.

"Thurrock Council has no prospect of returning to financial sustainability without significant and extraordinary financial support from government.

"The provisional deficit for the 2023/24 budget is £452m against a budget of £153m. It is already clear that Thurrock Council cannot contain its expenditure budget in 2023/24 within available resources. This is a pattern that continues for later years.

"Further assistance will be required including Capitalisation Directions covering future financial years. Indications are that Thurrock Council will need to seek extraordinary and dialogue has commenced."

It is likely that Thurrock Council will have to borrow around a billion pounds from the government, to be paid back over several decades.

This will mean a significant increase in the cost of council tax, probably over and above the government's recommended maximum of five per cent and there will be Draconian cuts in expenditure which will have a significant impact on many local services.

Mr Wake paid tribute to the work of his officer colleagues and also councillors as the failure began to unfold.

He offered thanks to "both to officers and to members for your incredible hard work to date in responding to the intervention.

"In particular I would like to thank Jonathan Wilson for stepping up in a time of crisis."

He described his efforts as gargantuan and thanks him for spending hundreds of hours on the diagnostic path to try and create a path to recovery. He also praised staff for their willingness to 'step up' and take part in the recovery plan.

Council leader Cllr Mark Coxshall was the only member of the ruling Conservative group to speak on the night as he and his party colleagues received a thorough lambasting from opposition members for allowing the situation to develop unchecked, despite many warnings from opposition members and a large number of media reports into the state of the council's finances.

Cllr Mark Coxshall addressed the meeting - the only Conservative to do so.

Cllr Coxshall told the meeting: "There is no doubt the last few weeks and months have been incredibly difficult for us all and worrying times for the residents of the borough.

"It's important that we try to restore confidence from the public and do not use tonight to make political point scoring.

"The financial position of the council is severe and we must treat each other better as we pull this council out of this mess.

"It is important to me that councillors of all parties have a chance to speak tonight and help shape the recovery. As of today, we start our transition into recovery.

"We have been more transparent across the board and started a journey of cultural change.

"We can pull the council out of the financial position it is in and into a success story that I feel the residents can rely on.

"I can say for my part I am sorry we are in this position. We now have a chance to look forward and work together."

Opposition leaders Cllr John Kent (Labour) and Gary Byrne (Independent) gave detailed addresses which are reported separately on Nub News.

Independent councillor John Allen said the Conservatives' actions had been 'shameful'.

Independent councillor John Allen said he feared that the council would end up penalising residents who could not afford to pay the expected increases in council tax.

Talking about the council's huge debt, he said: "Will this be recovered by our council tax by use of bailiffs, fines and imprisonment while senior officers walk free and remain in duty on full pay and allowances?

He described the likely increase in council tax as 'unjust', saying: "Through the shameful actions of some within this council acting without due diligence, the costly mistakes will undoubtedly put the cost onto our residents 

"It's hugely unfair to expect Thurrock taxpayers and residents to bear the heavy burden of these mistakes."

He feared a sale of assets would rob residents of future opportunity, saying: "I fear the loss of assets, London boroughs are already very interested in Thurrock. There are development sites that should ideally be for social housing for those many thousands of Thurrock residents on our waiting list.

"The way this council has been run is shameful and you are expecting residents to make up for your mistakes. It is unfair and unjust."

Conservatives had to face a litany of condemnation from Cllr Martin Kerin.

Labour's Cllr Martin Kerin said: "What we have heard is catastrophic for the resident of Thurrock. The debt will be settled on our residents for decades to come.

"Because of Tory incompetence the debt has gone up £490,000 for every day the administration opposite has been in charge of our borough.

"The real tragedy is that they were warned many times about this but refused to heed the warnings. A mixture of farce, hubris and downright arrogance.

"The team opposite us are not a new broom, to sweep and clean the mess. They have wrecked the house and are offering to clean it up."

Labour's Cllr Lee Watson gave an emotionally charged address, saying: "I can't promise my residents whether they will get their grass cut, their streets cleaned or get a swing park.

"They face extreme council tax increases. I am livid and angry that I have to stand here today in a council that I really love that has gone bankrupt."

Another Labour member, Cllr Cathy Kent, told how she had been given false reassurances as chair of the finance overview and scrutiny committee and questioned the role and accountability of Cllr Coxshall, saying: "Why has the leader, when all the time he sat on cabinet, never questionned?

"It appears he didn't ask a single question about the security of investments."

And another angry and charged Labour councillor, Victoria Holloway said: "In the nearly 12 years I have been a councillor, we knew there was something not right and it gives me no pleasure that we have been vindicated, I am angry and outraged and that doesn't get any less the more I read.

"Our calls for financial transparency fell on deaf ears, the more secretive it became the more we feared and we were right."

Addressing Conservative councillors she concluded: "We have spent months and years trying to get to the truth but you described our actions as an embarrassment. You laughed at us and had the audacity to dismiss our concerns. You will try to create a narrative saying that we were aware of this but you purposely blocked us as an opposition and slandered us calling us liars and scaremongers."

Joking at the end: Cllrs Rob Gledhill and Shane Ralph appeared to find the evening's events amusing.

Other than Cllr Coxshall, no one from the Conservative ranks spoke and at the end of the meeting, as members rose, several appeared to be smirking and showed little contrition, most notably former leader Cllr Rob Gledhill, who was in charge through the years the debt was accrued, and noted Tory apologist Cllr Shane Ralph who stood up laughing and joking between themselves!

The full meeting can be viewed via this link.