Chairman: Councillor K Vickers
Venue: Function Room 1, Civic Centre, Ashby Road, Scunthorpe
Time: 10 am
E-mail Address: sophie.whipps@northlincs.gov.uk

AGENDA

1. Substitutions.
2. Declarations of Disclosable Pecuniary Interests and Personal or Personal and Prejudicial Interests, and significant contact with Applicants, Objectors or Third Parties (Lobbying), if any.
3. To take the minutes of the meeting held on 6 September 2018 as a correct record and authorise the chairman to sign.
4. Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 - Application for a Private Hire Vehicle Drivers Licence - Ms C M Wilson.
5. Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 - Application for a Private Hire Vehicle Drivers Licence - Mr J Ahmed.
6. Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 - Review of a Private Hire Vehicle Drivers Licence - Mr M I Dobbs.
7. Any other items that the chairman decides are urgent by reason of special circumstances that must be specified.

MINUTES

PRESENT: – Councillor K Vickers in the Chair.

Councillors Allcock, Armitage, Ellerby and C Sherwood.

The sub-committee met at the Civic Centre, Scunthorpe.

1539 DECLARATIONS OF DISCLOSABLE PECUNIARY INTERESTS, PERSONAL OR PERSONAL AND PREJUDICIAL INTERESTS AND SIGNIFICANT CONTACT WITH APPLICANTS, OBJECTORS OR THIRD PARTIES (LOBBYING) - The following member declared a personal interest -

No lobbying was declared.

1540 MINUTES – Resolved – That the minutes of the meeting held on 6 September 2018, having been printed and circulated amongst the members, be taken as read and correctly recorded and be signed by the chairman.

1541 (16) LOCAL GOVERNMENT (MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS) ACT 1976 - APPLICATION FOR A PRIVATE HIRE VEHICLE DRIVERS LICENCE - Ms C Wilson - The Director: Operations submitted a report advising members of an application for the grant of a Private Hire Vehicle Drivers Licence to be determined by the sub-committee.

The report contained background information on the process for determining such applications, the information to be taken into account and the circumstances in which the sub-committee could revoke a licence.

The options available to the sub-committee when considering the application were:

• To grant the licence as applied for with no additional conditions or restrictions other than those normally applied to such licences.
• To grant the licence subject to additional conditions or restrictions.
• To refuse to grant the licence.

Should the sub-committee refuse the application or impose additional terms, conditions or restrictions then the applicant may appeal to the Magistrates Court within 21 days from the date on which she was notified of the decision.

Should the Magistrates uphold the decision of the council, the applicant had further recourse to the Crown Court.

The procedure for dealing with such applications at meetings of the sub-committee had previously been circulated to members.

The applicant was not in attendance. However, they had indicated on their counter notice that they wished for the application to be determined in their absence.

Resolved - The Licensing (Miscellaneous) Sub-Committee carefully considered all the representations presented at the hearing and had given particular weight to the medical report dated 30 July 2018, which stated that the applicant was fit to act as a driver of a private hire vehicle. The sub-committee therefore agreed to grant the license application in accordance with the Local Government (Miscellaneous) Provisions Act 1976 as they did consider the applicant to be a fit and proper person to hold such a licence. However, the sub-committee did agree to impose a condition on the licence that the applicant take a medical test yearly and submit the results of the test to the Licensing Department without delay.

1542 (17) LOCAL GOVERNMENT (MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS) ACT 1976 - APPLICATION FOR A PRIVATE HIRE VEHICLE DRIVERS LICENCE - Mr J Ahmed - Further to Minute 1535, the Director: Operations submitted a report advising members of an application for the grant of a Private Hire Vehicle Drivers Licence to be determined by the sub-committee.

The report contained background information on the process for determining such applications, the information to be taken into account and the circumstances in which the sub-committee could revoke a licence.

The options available to the sub-committee when considering the application were:

• To grant the licence as applied for with no additional conditions or restrictions other than those normally applied to such licences.
• To grant the licence subject to additional conditions or restrictions.
• To refuse to grant the licence.

Should the sub-committee refuse the application or impose additional terms, conditions or restrictions then the applicant may appeal to the Magistrates Court within 21 days from the date on which he was notified of the decision.

Should the Magistrates uphold the decision of the council, the applicant had further recourse to the Crown Court.

The procedure for dealing with such applications at meetings of the sub-committee had previously been circulated to members.

The applicant attended the meeting, who made submissions and responded to questions.

Resolved – The Licensing (Miscellaneous) Sub-Committee carefully considered all of the representations presented at the hearing, alongside Table 7 within paragraph 8 of the council's Licensing Policy and, in this particular instance, the sub-committee agreed to deviate from its Licensing Policy and grant Mr Ahmed a Private Hire Vehicle Driver's Licence for a period of twelve months. The deviation was a result of the applicant only being two weeks away from the Policy's prescribed four years free from conviction and therefore the sub-committee did consider Mr Ahmed to be a fit and proper person in accordance with section 51 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous) Provision Act 1976. However, the sub-committee were seriously concerned with the offence and the applicant was reminded that the standing of a fit and proper person applies to his conduct throughout his day to day life as the safety of the public was the sub-committees paramount concern.

1543 (18) LOCAL GOVERNMENT (MISCELLANEOUS) PROVISIONS ACT 1976 - TOWN POLICE CLAUSES ACT 1847 - REVIEW OF A PRIVATE HIRE VEHICLE DRIVERS LICENCE - Mr M Dobbs - The Director: Operations submitted a report advising members of a review of a Hackney Carriage / Private Hire Vehicle Drivers Licence to be determined by the sub-committee.

The report contained background information on the process for determining such applications, the information to be taken into account and the circumstances in which the sub-committee could revoke a licence.

The options available to the sub-committee when considering the application were:

• To take no action.
• To warn the person regarding future conduct.
• To issue points against the licence in accordance with Appendix I of the council's Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Policy.
• To add additional conditions to the licence or add conditions of obtaining a licence.
• To suspend the licence for a set period of time.
• To revoke the licence.

Should the sub-committee revoke the licence or impose additional terms, conditions or restrictions then the licence holder may appeal to the Magistrates Court within 21 days from the date on which he was notified of the decision.

Should the Magistrates uphold the decision of the council, the licence holder had further recourse to the Crown Court.

The procedure for dealing with such applications at meetings of the sub-committee had previously been circulated to members.

The Licensing Authority presented the reason for the report being considered by the sub-committee.

The licence holder had been invited to the hearing. However, he was not in attendance. Due to the serious nature of the allegations made against the licence holder, the sub-committee agreed to consider the matter in his absence.

Following the submissions of the Licensing Authority, the sub-committee then adjourned for deliberation.

Resolved - The Licensing (Miscellaneous) Sub-Committee considered the licence holder's recent conviction to be of a very serious nature and had noted his previous attendance before this sub-committee on the 14 January 2016 for a very similar offence. Therefore, the sub-committee agreed unanimously to revoke Mr Dobbs private hire vehicles drivers licence under section 61 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous) Provisions Act 1976, with immediate effect, as they do not consider Mr Dobbs to be a fit and proper person to hold such a licence as the safety of the public was the sub-committees paramount concern.