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 either a

(a)   personal interest

(b)   prejudicial interest

(c)    disclosable pecuniary interest (DPI)

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 21 January 2020 as a true and

correct record.

The Public Protection Sub-Committee considered the minutes of the last meeting held on 21 January 2020.

Resolved:

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 21 January 2020 as a correct

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 and 4.

(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 Public Protection Sub-Committee considered three applicants for a Private Hire Driver’s Licence and one existing Licence Holder who had been convicted of offences or otherwise given reason for concern.

(i)                  S.E.S (existing)

Mr Ryan Ratcliffe, Licensing Enforcement Officer, was in attendance and presented the case on behalf of the authority. Mr Ratcliffe explained that S.E.S. had been a licensed driver for a number of years and during the renewal process had declared a caution for possession of a controlled substance. He emphasised that the Council’s Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing policy took a dim view of offences involving drugs especially due to the risk to public safety in combining driving and drugs. In Mr Ratcliffe’s view the issue had been compounded by S.E.S’s failure to disclose the offence when applying to renew his licence.

S.E.S was in attendance accompanied by a family member. He explained the situation regarding the offence. S.E.S. emphasised that the offence had been a one-off incident that he had grown the drug himself using his skills as a gardener. He outlined his belief that the drug would assist in dealing with his back injuries and that he had not taken actually taken the drug and would never have had while acting as a licensed driver. S.E.S. further explained that he had not fully understood the caution process and had omitted the offence as an oversight.

The Public Protection Sub-Committee considered carefully the renewal application and all the relevant information regarding offences. The Sub-Committee considered that in view of the circumstances particularly that S.E.S. had by his own admission been concerned in the production of controlled drugs, even though it was for his own use, that he had demonstrated that he was not a fit and proper person to hold a Private Hire Vehicle Driver’s licence. The Sub-Committee did that there was evidence that S.E.S. had sought to deliberately mislead the Licensing Authority by omitting the caution from his application form. 

Resolved:

1.      That the application for a  Private Hire Vehicle Driver’s Licence in respect of S.E.S be refused.

2.      That no action be taken in respect of the failure to declare the offence.

(ii)                K.J.V. (new application)

Mr Ryan Ratcliffe, Licensing Enforcement Officer, was in attendance and presented the case on behalf of the authority. Mr Ratcliffe explained that K.J.V. had submitted an application to become a licensed driver and included on his application form details of a number of offences related to food safety. While the offences were not directly mentioned in the Council’s Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy it had been considered due to the nature and number to refer K.J.V’s application to the Sub-Committee.

K.J.V was in attendance and made representations to the Sub-Committee. K.J.V expressed contrition for the offences but outlined that these had occurred during the running of a hotel. K.J.V. explained that he had left the business with his and his partner’s collective inability to ensure that the premises met all the food safety requirements a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

During consideration of the above item, the following motion was moved, seconded, voted upon and lost.

“That in case of S.E.S. the application for a Private Hire Driver’s Licence be granted subject to a warning letter.“

(This item contains personal information regarding a licence holder 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 considered a referral in respect of Private Hire Vehicle Licence holder who had presented a new vehicle for licensing in a very poor condition.

Mr Lee Petrak, Licensing and Public Protection Manager, was in attendance and outlined the concerns of the Licensing Authority. Mr Petrak explained that the licence holder had submitted a vehicle that was more than ten years old and in a very poor state of repair with significant damage to the underside of the vehicle. While the Licensing Authority did not necessarily have immediate concerns about the Licence Holder’s fitness, some concerns had been raised by the submission and the Licence Holder’s view that the vehicle should be resubmitted for licensing. Mr Petrak explained that it was the view of the Vehicle Inspector that the vehicle’s chassis was so structurally damaged that it could not be made safe in the long term for use as a licensed vehicle and expressed concern that the vehicle would be temporarily repaired.

The Licence Holder was not in attendance.

The Sub-Committee considered the referral. It accepted the expert evidence submitted by Mr Petrak and on behalf of the Licensing Authority. On balance it concluded that no actions should be taken against Licence Holder in general terms but the vehicle should never be accepted for licensing in the future.

Resolved:

That the vehicle not be accepted for submission for re-licensing.

To consider proposed Policy on the use of the National Register of Taxi Licence Revocations and Refusals for Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Drivers.

The Sub-Committee considered the proposed policy on the use of the National Register of Taxi Licence Revocations and Refusals for Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Drivers. The aim of the register was to allow Councils to share information regarding refused applicants to enable all potential decision makers to be aware of all issues regarding applicants. The Local Government Association (LGA) had commissioned the development of a national register of Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Vehicle Driver Licence refusals and revocations, the ‘National Register of Refusals and Revocations’ or NR3. The policy attached at Appendix 5(a) outlined how the Council would propose to use the register and share the information with other Councils.

Resolved:

To consider the policy outlined in Appendix 5(a) to the agenda and subject to any amendments, authorise a four week period of consultation with the trade.

To note the date of the next scheduled meeting as 17 March  2020 in Committee

Room A, Town Hall, Blackpool.

To note the date of the next scheduled meeting as 17 March  2020 in Committee

Room A, Town Hall, Blackpool.