Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received on behalf of Councillor Melling.

To be apprised of any changes to the membership of the Committee in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 4.

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 4, the Committee noted the termination of membership of Councillor Devine, and the appointment of Councillor Pritchard for this meeting only, thereby giving effect to the wishes of the political groups.

Note:  No other business is permitted unless, by reason of special circumstances, which shall be specified at the meeting, the Chairman is of the opinion that the item(s) should be considered as a matter of urgency.

There were no urgent items of business.

Party Whips are not to be used by this Committee in respect of functions concerning the determination of new Licence Applications, Revocations and Appeals.  When considering any other matter which relates to a decision of the Cabinet or the performance of any Member of the Cabinet, in accordance with Regulatory Committee Procedure Rule 9, Members must declare the existence of any Party Whip and the nature of it, before the commencement of the Committee’s deliberations on the matter.

There were no declarations of Party Whip.

If a Member requires advice on Declarations of Interest, he/she is advised to contact the Borough Solicitor in advance of the meeting.  (For the assistance of members a checklist for use in considering their position on any particular item is included at the end of the agenda sheet).

There were no declarations of interest.

There are no minutes to receive.

There were no minutes to receive.

To receive as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 4 April 2017.

RESOLVED:             That the Minutes of the meeting held on 4 April 2017 be received as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

To consider the report of the Director of Leisure and Wellbeing.

Consideration was given to the report of the Director of Leisure and Wellbeing as contained on pages 7 to 164 of the Book of Reports which sought approval of the draft Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy Statement prior to consultation.

The Commercial, Safety and Licensing Manager outlined the report and responded to questions and comments raised by Members including the possibility of the delivery of dementia awareness training in the future.  It was also noted that there were some minor administrative changes throughout the document.

RESOLVED: A.                    That the draft Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy Statement attached at Appendix 2 to the report be approved subject to adding the requirement of dementia awareness training to the relevant sections of the Policy.

B.                    That the Director of Leisure and Wellbeing be given delegated authority to subject the draft Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy Statement to a period of public consultation before returning the document to the Licensing and Appeals Committee for final approval.

C.                    That the list of vehicles designated for the purposes of Section 165 of the Equality Act 2010 attached to Appendix 3 to this report be approved with effect from 3 July 2017.

D.                    That the Director of Leisure and Wellbeing be given delegated authority to publish and maintain the list of vehicles designated for the purposes of Section 165 of the Equality Act 2010 attached to Appendix 3 to the report.

It is recommended that members of the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following item(s) of business in accordance with Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act and as, in all the circumstances of the case the public interest in disclosing the information.  The nature of the exempt information and the relevant exemption paragraphs are shown in brackets after the report title.

RESOLVED    That under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraph 2 (Identity of an individual) and Paragraph 7 (Criminal Matters) part 1 of Schedule 12A outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

(IDENTITY OF AN INDIVIDUAL / CRIMINAL MATTERS – Paragraphs 2 & 7)

To consider the report of the Director of Leisure and Wellbeing.

Members were asked to consider an Application for a Private Hire Driver Licence Number WK/000226532 having regard to the content of the Statutory Declaration that accompanied the Application Form and any other relevant information.

The Applicant attended the meeting and was interviewed by the Committee during which he was advised of his right of appeal to the Magistrates Court if he was aggrieved by the decision.

RESOLVED:             That Private Hire Driver Licence Number WK/000226532 be GRANTED.

(Note: The Officers from the Leisure and Wellbeing Services left the meeting as Members considered their decision in this case).

(IDENTITY OF AN INDIVIDUAL / CRIMINAL MATTERS – Paragraphs 2 & 7)

To consider the report of the Director of Leisure and Wellbeing.

Members were asked to consider an existing Private Hire Driver Licence Number WK/000226631, having regard to offences on the drivers DVLA Licence.

The driver attended the meeting and was interviewed by the Committee during which he was advised of his right of appeal to the Magistrates Court if he was aggrieved by the decision.

RESOLVED:             That Private Hire Driver Licence WK/000226631 be REVOKED.

(Note: The Officers from the Leisure and Wellbeing Services left the meeting as Members considered their decision in this case).