Agenda and minutes

Members are asked to declare any interests in the items under consideration and in

doing so state:

(1)   the type of interest concerned; and

(2) the nature of the interest concerned

If any member requires advice on declarations of interests, they are advised to contact the Head of Democratic Governance in advance of the meeting.

There were no declarations of interest on this occasion.

To agree the minutes of the last meeting held on 12 September 2017 as a true and correct record.

Resolved: That the minutes of the meeting held on 12 September 2017 be signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

Resolved: That under Section 100 (A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the whole item, including the decisions referred to at Agenda items 3, 4 and 5 on the grounds that it would involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraph 1 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act.

(This item contains personal information regarding applicants and licence holders which is exempt from publication by virtue of Paragraph 1 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972)

The Sub-Committee was informed of an applicant seeking consent for photography for trade or business, who had given sufficient cause for concern as to be referred to the Sub-Committee for consideration.

Members discussed the application as follows:

S.L (New applicant)

Mr Mark Marshall, Head of Licensing Service, who was in attendance, presented the case on behalf of the Authority. He reported that the applicant had been referred to the licensing service following his application for a consent for photography licence and as part of routine checks carried out on applicants, it had emerged that SL had been arrested but not formally charged in relation to an offence of a sexual nature.

The applicant, who was in attendance, explained that in his opinion, the incident was a misunderstanding and that there was no case to answer as he had not been charged.

The Sub-Committee accepted that the facts surrounding the applicant’s arrest were limited and no charges had ultimately resulted. However, SL’s version of events seemed confused and given the sexual nature of the incident and the fact that the applicants intended employment, should consent be granted, would involve him working in close proximity to children, the Sub-Committee expressed concern that sufficient risk to the public did exist.

Resolved:

To refuse consent for photography by way of trade or business as the applicant was not a fit and proper person to be granted such consent.

(This item contains personal information regarding applicants and licence holders which is exempt from publication by virtue of Paragraph 1 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972)

The Sub-Committee was informed of a number of applicants and existing Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Vehicle drivers who had given sufficient cause for concern as to be referred to the Sub-Committee for consideration.

Members discussed the applications and referral as follows:

(i)                 L.A.K (New Private Hire Driver applicant)

Mr Marshall presented the Authority’s case. He reported that the applicant had previously been refused a licence on the grounds of dishonest conduct on his part for non-declaration of an offence on the application to be licensed. It was also noted that the conviction had now expired.

LAK advised that he regretted the incident and had not been in any other trouble either before or since that date. He added that he had received a firm offer of work should the licence be granted and apologised for his ignorance in relation to what should have been declared on the application.

The Sub-Committee expressed concern about the lack of understanding displayed by the applicant when completing his previous application to be licensed. However, members were minded that given the time that had elapsed since the offence and LAK’s frank and honest account and general attitude, he had now demonstrated that he could be considered fit and proper to be granted a licence.

Resolved: That the application for a Private Hire Driver’s Licence be granted.

(ii)               S.P.S (New Private Hire Driver applicant)

SPS was in attendance and made representations to the Sub-Committee. He explained that in response to the Authority’s case, he had made mistakes in relation to the number of serious offences outlined in the report. Whilst there were numerous convictions and sentences listed, he added that all time had been served and he had been conviction free for more than a decade.  With regard to the driving offences, the applicant had few answers and was unable to recall any detail about a conviction for dangerous driving listed in the report.

The Sub-Committee were satisfied that all punishments for criminal convictions had been served by the applicant and he not been convicted of further offences for an extended period of time. However, some of the driving convictions were recent and the applicant’s failure to adequately explain the circumstances of some offences led Members to be inclined to consider him an unsuitable person to be licensed.

Resolved: That the application for a Hackney Carriage Licence be refused on the grounds that the applicant was not a fit and proper person to be licensed.

(iii)             Z.K (New Private Hire and Hackney Carriage Driver applicant)

Mr Marshall explained that the applicant had a list of convictions which included two for serious drug related offences and others for deception and some which had involved violence.

ZK was in attendance with a friend, DH and both made representations to the Sub-Committee. The applicant expressed regret for the offences he had committed and advised that he had been conviction free for a period of almost 14 years and had served his time in relation to each offence, which  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

(This item contains personal information regarding applicants and licence holders which is exempt from publication by virtue of Paragraph 1 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972)

Following the Sub-Committees decision on 15 August 2017 to allow an amendment to the existing delegation of powers to permit the Head of Licensing following consultation with the Chairman/Vice-Chairman to take action where serious concerns were raised regarding the fitness of a driver to hold a Hackney Carriage or Private Hire Driver’s Licence, members were advised of the decision taken on 28 September 2017 to revoke with immediate effect, the Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Vehicle driver’s licence , in respect of the following case:

B.R (Existing Hackney Carriage and Private Hire driver)

The Sub-Committee noted that the decision was taken to revoke the licence due to the driver’s admission that he had a substantial alcohol problem and both the Chairman and the Head of Licensing Service felt that if allowed to continue to operate, the driver presented a significant risk to the public.

The Sub-Committee was also informed of two other uses of delegated powers in the period since the agenda had been sent out and which Members were advised would be detailed in the report brought to the 7 November 2017 meeting.

To note the date of the next meeting as 7 November 2017.

Members noted that the date of the next meeting was scheduled for Tuesday 7 November 2017.