Lewes District Council’s Treasury Management Strategy says that it could increase its borrowing up to £117.7m in 2019/20, up from £56.65m this year.
Homira Javadi, chief finance officer at Lewes and Eastbourne Councils, told Room 151 that the increase reflected potential borrowing to fund two major initiatives, whose timing was uncertain, and which had been included in the Strategy as early as possible.
£20m of the projected increase relates to a loan facility to arm’s length housing companies, loans from which will generate interest for the council.
The money will be used for regeneration and for addressing homelessness and housing need.
Javadi said: “For prudential reasons, the potential borrowing has obviously been reflected as early as possible in the Strategy.”
The second major area of possible borrowing relates to £19m for a regeneration initiative to provide a new integrated health hub and residential housing.
Javadi said of this figure too: “For prudential purposes this has been reflected in the Borrowing Strategy at the earliest opportunity, but again, the phasing of actual borrowing is likely to be over a longer timeframe.”
