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 29 March 2016 as a true and correct record.

Resolved: That the minutes of the meeting held on 29 March 2016 be signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

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 item 7 on the grounds that it would involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraph 1 of Part 12A of the Act.

To consider four applications to license a modified Horse-Drawn Hackney Carriage.

The Sub-Committee considered four separate applications to license a modified Horse-Drawn Hackney Carriage. 

Three of the applicants Mr Savage, Mr Edwards and Mr Davidson were in attendance at the meeting. However Mr Simmons was not in attendance and did not bring his Carriage along for inspection.

During consideration of the applications, Members conducted a visual inspection of the Carriages. Mr Andrews, Licensing Officer, who was in attendance, informed the Sub-Committee that the three Carriages on display had each been inspected by the Council’s Carriage Inspector and he had confirmed that they had met the required standard.

Resolved: 

1.      That the application to license a modified Horse-Drawn Hackney Carriage be granted in the case of Mr Savage.

2.      That the application to license a modified Horse-Drawn Hackney Carriage be granted in the case of Mr Edwards.

3.      That the application to license a modified Horse-Drawn Hackney Carriage be granted in the case of Mr Davidson.

4.      That consideration of the application to license a modified Horse-Drawn Hackney Carriage in the case of Mr Simmons be deferred to a future meeting to allow the applicant an additional opportunity to attend.

To consider proposal to change the identification plate on Horse-Drawn Hackney Carriages.

The Sub-Committee considered the recommendation from the Head of the Licensing Service to implement a new style Horse-Drawn Hackney Carriage identification plate that would contain more information than the current design and was designed to aid enforcement operations and bring the plates in line with those already in use on motorised taxi vehicles.

Members agreed that the current identification plate was no longer fit for purpose and should be changed to more closely resemble those already in place on motorised taxi vehicles.

Resolved:

1.      To agree the new Horse-Drawn Hackney Carriage identification plate design.

2.      That the newly designed identification plate be implemented from 3June 2016.

To consider a proposal to add an additional condition to Donkey Driver Licences.

The Head of Licensing Service advised the Sub-Committee of a recommendation to change the conditions attached to Donkey Driver licences that would require drivers to wear their badge at all times whilst working and in a manner that would be plainly visible to members of the public.

The Sub-Committee agreed that in the interest of public safety it was important that such persons be easily identifiable to members of the public and enforcement officers.

Resolved: To add a condition to the Donkey Drivers licence that, when working on the beach, licensed donkey drivers shall wear the badge issued to them by the Council in such a position and manner as to be plainly and distinctly visible.        

(This item contains personal information regarding 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 existing Hackney Carriage driver and an existing Private Hire Vehicle driver that had given sufficient cause for concern as to be referred to the Sub-Committee for consideration.

Members discussed the referrals as follows:

(i)                 SRB – Existing Hackney Carriage Driver’s Licence

SRB was not in attendance at the meeting.

Mrs Davies informed Members that the driver had requested that the Sub-Committee defer consideration of the case until he had secured a legal representative to speak on his behalf.

Resolved:The Sub-Committee agreed to defer consideration of the case until its next meeting on 14th June 2016 to allow sufficient time for the driver to seek legal representation.

(ii)               KNT  – Existing Private Hire Vehicle Driver’s Licence

Mr Marshall, Licensing and Health and Safety Enforcement Manager, and Luke Andrews, Licensing Officer who were in attendance presented the case on behalf of the Authority. Also in attendance were Mr Taylor, Public Protection Officer and the Civil Enforcement Officer at the time of the incident who made representations to the Sub-Committee.

KNT was in attendance at the meeting accompanied by a friend and Mr Charnley, his legal representative. Each made representations to the Sub-Committee.

Mr Marshall described an incident in which a Civil Enforcement Officer had been subject to verbal abuse whilst carrying out her duties and issuing a Penalty Charge Notice to an illegally parked vehicle. Members were informed that the Civil Enforcement Officer had identified KNT from a series of photographs presented to her by Officers of the Council in a bid to identify the driver responsible for the abuse. In addition, the Sub-Committee was shown body camera footage of the incident recorded by the Civil Enforcement Officer, on which the verbal abuse could clearly be heard though no individual could be easily identified.

Mr Charnley reported that his client had not engaged with the Civil Enforcement Officer as had been claimed and he explained that it had actually been another friend who was also present that had displayed abusive behaviour at the time of the incident.

The Sub-Committee noted the nature of the applicant’s prior convictions and his appearances before them on previous occasions. Members expressed concerns with the accuracy of the driver’s version of events and agreed that Mr Marshall and the Civil Enforcement Officer’s account was more reliable. It was therefore agreed that in relation to the incident, the driver’s conduct had fallen far below the expectations of a licensed driver. In addition to issues with the driver’s version of events and the lack of supporting evidence to substantiate his claims, the Civil Enforcement Officer’s video evidence and long years of service were also taken into account.

Resolved: That the Private Hire Vehicle drivers licence be revoked on the grounds that the driver was not a fit and proper person to remain licensed and his conduct had fallen significantly short of the standards expected of a licensed driver.

Background papers: exempt

To note the date of the next meeting as 14 June 2016.

Members noted that the date of the next meeting was scheduled for Tuesday 12July 2016.