Local government, scrutiny and council finance
Buckinghamshire has a single unitary local authority, Buckinghamshire Council, created on 1 April 2020 (Buckinghamshire (Structural Changes) Order 2019). Town and parish councils, such as Beaconsfield Town Council, form a separate local tier.
A council run by a Leader and Cabinet must have overview and scrutiny committees (Local Government Act 2000, section 9F). At Buckinghamshire Council these are the select committees. They review the Cabinet's decisions and the council's performance and make recommendations; they do not take the executive decisions themselves.
The Finance & Resources Select Committee scrutinises how the council raises and spends its money: the £577 million annual budget, council tax, reserves, borrowing and performance, on behalf of more than 570,000 residents. Cllr Jackson Ng was a member in 2021/22 and has chaired it since 20 May 2026. Items the committee has examined since then include the Budget Outturn 2025-26, Q4 performance monitoring, the Strategic Asset Management Plan and the HR People Plan.
In 2025/26 he chaired the Standards & General Purposes Committee, which oversees the councillors' code of conduct, standards complaints and the constitution. Its amendment requiring councillors to register allowances or fees received from outside bodies to which the council appoints them was passed by Full Council in April 2026.
From the committee room
Jackson Ng's contributions at public Buckinghamshire Council meetings on this subject, with transcripts.
- HR People Plan Update , Finance & Resources Select Committee, 21 clips
- Strategic Asset Management Plan , Finance & Resources Select Committee, 16 clips
- Overview of the Council's Approach to Managing Property & Capital Assets , Finance & Resources Select Committee, 9 clips
- Budget Outturn 2025-26 , Finance & Resources Select Committee, 17 clips
- Performance Monitoring Q4 , Finance & Resources Select Committee, 4 clips
- Annual Review of Member Code of Conduct Complaints 2025/26 , Standards & General Purposes Committee, 31 clips
- Transparency of All Member Fees and Allowances for All External Bodies for 2024/2025 and Annually Thereafter , Standards & General Purposes Committee, 25 clips
- Member Code of Conduct Complaints - Quarter 2 Review , Standards & General Purposes Committee, 4 clips
How he voted at Full Council
- Further £5m for road maintenance from reserves (budget amendment) . Jackson Ng: Against. Motion lost (For 42 / Against 48 / Abstain 1).
- Budget and council tax 2026/27 . Jackson Ng: For. Motion carried (For 61 / Against 27 / Abstain 0).
- Object to the Fair Funding Review 2.0 . Jackson Ng: For. Motion carried (For 76 / Against 3 / Abstain 4).
- High Wycombe community governance review . Jackson Ng: For. Motion carried (For 82 / Against 24 / Abstain 1).
- 100% council tax premium on second homes (amendment) . Jackson Ng: Against. Motion lost (For 23 / Against 71 / Abstain 0).
- Budget and council tax 2024/25 . Jackson Ng: For. Motion carried (For 91 / Against 26 / Abstain 1).
- Budget and council tax 2023/24 . Jackson Ng: For. Motion carried (For 94 / Against 14 / Abstain 10).
- Budget and council tax 2022/23 . Jackson Ng: For. Motion carried (For 78 / Against 21 / Abstain 4).
Every recorded vote since 2021, each linked to the official minutes.
Posts on this subject
- Chairing the Finance and Resources Select Committee
- Elected as the new Chairman of the Finance & Resources Select Committee
- Chairing the Standards and General Purposes Committee
- Increasing transparency in our council
- Defending our Green Belt on the Growth, Infrastructure and Housing Select Committee
- Chairing the Standards and General Purpose Committee
- Chairing my first Standards and General Purposes Committee for Buckinghamshire Council
- New Council Committee Appointments!
Questions people ask
- What does the Finance & Resources Select Committee do?
- It scrutinises how Buckinghamshire Council raises and spends its money: the £577m budget, council tax, reserves, borrowing and performance, on behalf of more than 570,000 residents.
- Who chairs Buckinghamshire Council's Finance & Resources Select Committee?
- Cllr Jackson Ng has chaired the committee since 20 May 2026.
- How did Jackson Ng vote on the 2026/27 budget?
- He voted for the budget and council tax for 2026/27 at Full Council on 25 February 2026; it was carried (For 61, Against 27, Abstain 0).
- What is a select committee in local government?
- A select (overview and scrutiny) committee examines the decisions and performance of a council's executive. It can question Cabinet Members and officers and make recommendations, but it does not take the executive decisions itself.
- What change did the Standards & General Purposes Committee bring on allowances?
- Under Jackson Ng's chairmanship, it brought an amendment to Full Council requiring councillors to register allowances or fees received from outside bodies to which the council appoints them. The amendment was passed.