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.

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  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.

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 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.

To agree the minutes of the last meeting held on 27^th October 2015 as a true and correct record.

Resolved: That the minutes of the meeting held on 27^th October 2015 be signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

The Sub-Committee was informed of four new applications and five existing Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Vehicle drivers that had given sufficient cause for concern as to be referred to the Sub-Committee for consideration.

Members discussed the applications and referrals as follows:

(i)                 CB – Existing Private Hire Vehicle Drivers Licence

Mr Marshall, Licensing Health and Safety Enforcement Manager, who was in attendance during consideration of the case presented it on behalf of the Authority.  Mr Ratcliffe, Licensing Officer, was also in attendance.

CB was in attendance and provided representations to the Sub-Committee.

Members were advised that the case had been deferred from the previous meeting to allow the driver an additional opportunity to appear before the Sub-Committee. He had been unable to attend the previous meeting to make representations due to a family commitment.

Mr Marshall explained that CB had been involved in a dispute with a female passenger and her son, who it was alleged, had damaged CB’s vehicle. The situation had been aggravated by subsequent disagreements on social media and within the workplace at various meetings between the driver and Company Directors.

The driver explained his behaviour following the incident had been misjudged and he expressed regret for those actions. However, he added that, in his opinion, he had become a scapegoat and the subject of a personal vendetta.

The Sub-Committee considered the reactions of the driver in relation to the alleged incident and expressed concern at some of the behaviour he exhibited subsequently especially towards the complainant. However, Members were also concerned about disciplinary arrangements employed by the firm following the incident. Members agreed that CB’s record as a licensed driver and the consistent version of events he had provided had removed any doubt that he presented a risk to members of the public.

Resolved:

That the driver be issued with a warning letter in relation to future conduct indicating that in the event of a further incident, the licence be revoked or suspended.

(ii)               DC – Existing Hackney Carriage Driver

NOTE: Councillor Maycock arrived before consideration of the case and was involved in all subsequent discussions.

Mr Marshall presented the case on behalf of the Authority.

The Sub-Committee had previously hear details of the case but it had since been established that the driver, AN, had not been driving the vehicle at the time of the incident and therefore no further action would be taken against him. Members were advised that DC had since been confirmed as the driver at the time of the alleged incident.

DC was in attendance and provided representations to the Sub-Committee.

The Sub-Committee was advised that the case had previously been deferred in order to confirm the identity of the driver at the time of the alleged incident.

Mr Marshall advised that the driver had violated a traffic control order and ignored road closure signage designed to ensure the safety of the public.

The Driver expressed regret about entering the controlled zone to drop off a fare paying passenger but  ...  view the full minutes text for item 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)

Members were requested to consider whether a number of conditions that had been imposed on a Hackney Carriage license were still reasonably necessary.

Members considered the referral as follows.

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

Mr Ratcliffe presented the case on behalf of the Authority.

SJH was not in attendance but requested that the Sub-Committee hear the case in his absence.

Mr Ratcliffe advised Members that the conditions applied to the licence had been transferred from the previous licence holder and SJH had simply inherited them. Since inheriting the licence, both the driver and the vehicle he operated had given no cause for concern.

Resolved:

That all conditions imposed on the Hackney Carriage driver’s licence be removed as they had applied to the previous driver and were not applicable to the current driver.

Background papers: exempt

To note the date of the next meeting as Tuesday 19^th January 2016.

Members noted that the date of the next meeting would be Tuesday 19^th January 2016.