Highland Council on course for a billion pounds worth of debt by 2016/17?

This observer has been looking at the documents attached to the agenda of yesterday’s Highland Council’s Finance Housing and Resources Committee and more specifically item 8 of the agenda which was a Treasury Management Strategy Statement and Investment Statement – 2014/15. 

Below is a screenshot of page 17 of that document (click to enlarge). The capital financing requirement for 2016/17 is a real biggie at £1,013.4 million – you can see from the legend that borrowing is involved in that. 

The bottom row gives figures that seem to be pure borrowing however – “Treasury Position This indicator shows the expected borrowing position, net of investments.” An estimated figure for 2016/17 is £937.4 million. 

Figures on the page then and daunting perhaps for those not of an accounting mind. Worrying too? The Gurn today asked Councillor Michael Green what he thought of these projections. Michael told the Gurn that he was very worried and he thought the figures were “unsustainable”.