WOKINGHAM Borough Council’s housing arm is expected to continue making a loss for a while longer.
Liberal Democrat deputy leader, Cllr Clive Jones, wanted an update on the trading condition of Wokingham Borough Council Holdings.
He told a meeting of the council’s executive committee, held at its Shute End offices on Thursday, January 30, that at the end of December last year, WBC Holdings had made a loss of £223,000.
“Do you expect there to be a profit or loss at the end of the current financial year and can these figures be presented as both a cash figure and a percentage of turnover?” he asked.
Replying, Cllr John Kaiser, the executive member for finance and housing, said that the losses were in line with the agreed budget for the company, which oversees the activities of the council’s housing companies.
“As such, its financial position reflects the positions of the companies,” Cllr Kaiser continued. “Its sources of income are interest from loans, on which it is merely an ‘on’ lender from WBC at cost, and dividend income from the companies
“It therefore makes no profit of its own. It does however incur administrative costs and these contribute to the deficit.
“It will remain loss-making until such time as the subsidiary companies start to pay dividends.”
