Agenda and minutes

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Media

Items
No. Item

LIC14

Apologies for Absence and Declarations of Interest

To receive any apologies for absence and declarations of interest.

Minutes:

There were no apologies for absence or declarations of interest. 

LIC15

Exclusion of the Public and Press

Consideration of reports containing exempt information within the meaning of section 100I and paragraph 1 part 1 Schedule 12A Local Government Act 1972.

Minutes:

RESOLVED that under section 1001 of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded for the following items of business on the grounds that it involved the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 1 and 2 part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act.

 

LIC16

Review of Private Hire & Hackney Carriage Driver Licence

To determine a review of a Private Hire & Hackney Carriage Driver Licence.

Minutes:

The Senior Licensing and Compliance Officer gave a summary of his report which requested that members determine a review of the applicant’s Private Hire and Hackney Carriage Driver Licence.

 

The driver addressed the Panel, explaining that it was their first permanent route as a Home to School Transport (HTST) driver and that they had not been briefed by the operator regarding the child’s condition beforehand. They admitted to playing the radio softly on one occasion, but they had not done this with any intention of hurting the child.

 

The driver said that much of the complaint against them was false, including the suggestion that they had pressured the complainant not to contact the Council. They emphasised that they were a nice person and would never have hurt the child on purpose.

 

In response to questions from the Panel, the driver clarified the following:

·         The Passenger Assistant (PA) in the back seat had said that they could not hear the radio and was willing to back the driver up on this.

·         Both the driver and PA had done everything they could to help the child and they believed they had a good relationship with the family.

·         The complaint had only been submitted to the Council after the driver had made the decision to request a change of route.

·         The complainant had not spoken to the driver in-person before about the child’s condition.

·         The driver had been driving the child since March; however, they were frequently absent from school, so they had not spent much time with them overall.

·         On the day of the incident, the child had told the driver and PA not to speak so she had put the radio on her side of the car very softly and didn’t think that it would impact the child. They accepted that they had overwritten a condition not to play music.

 

The Solicitor drew the Panel’s attention to the email from a parent on the driver’s current route which was written in support of them retaining their licence.  

 

To conclude, the driver said that they did not believe that they were a risk to public and apologised again for the mistake which they had made. They stated that in future they would always check first before doing anything that they are unsure about.

 

The meeting adjourned between 10:30 – 11:03 for the Panel to deliberate.

 

DECISION NOTICE:

 

The application before the Panel today is for the review of Ms Larking’s joint hackney carriage/PHV driver’s licence. She is employed by 24 x 7 Ltd on the Home to School Transport (HtST) side of the business and this hearing is being conducted upon a hybrid basis. The Panel, the Case Officer and the Legal Advisor are in the Council Chamber at London Road, Saffron Walden and other participants, including Ms Larking, are attending via Zoom.

 

We have had the opportunity of reading the officer’s report in this case, a copy of which has been served on Ms Larking, and we have also  ...  view the full minutes text for item LIC16

LIC17

Review of Private Hire & Hackney Carriage Driver Licence

To determine a review of a Private Hire & Hackney Carriage Driver Licence.

Minutes:

The Senior Licensing and Compliance Officer gave a summary of his report which requested that members determine a review of the applicant’s Private Hire and Hackney Carriage Driver Licence.

 

The driver addressed the Panel and confirmed that they had visited Council Depot for a vehicle compliance test, however denied making any of the alleged comments during and after the inspection.

 

In response to questions for the Panel, the driver said that it was the first time that they had visited the depot and they had never met the technician before so was unaware of any reason why the technician would have made the allegations against him.

 

The driver explained that the technician had not informed him of any of the faults and advisories on his vehicle, saying that he would pass the information onto his manager instead, who would then pass it on to the Council. Following the visit, the driver said that he contacted the Licensing department at Uttlesford District Council to say that he did not know if he had passed or failed the inspection and when he received an email from Senior Licensing and Compliance Officer to inform him that the vehicle had failed, he took it straight for repair. He confirmed that he had used T and R Auto Repairs as his garage of choice since he was granted his license in 2012.

 

The Solicitor clarified that the witness statement was made under Section 9 of the Criminal Justice Act 1967, whereby it is a legal document and contains  a statement of truth. Should the technician have given false evidence, it would be punishable as perjury.

 

The meeting adjourned between 11:20 – 11:46 for the Panel to deliberate.

 

DECISION NOTICE:

 

The matter before the Panel today is an application for the review of Mr Khan’s joint hackney carriage/PHV driver’s licence reference PH/HC0565. Since Mr Khan is an owner/driver, we may also need to consider vehicle licence reference number HCV014 dependent on our decision today.

 

We have had the opportunity of reading the officer’s report in this case, a copy of which has been served on Mr Khan, and we have also seen, as has he, the background documents annexed thereto including the list of vehicle defects and the written statements of Mr Cutter, the vehicle technician involved.  In reaching our decision we have also taken into account national and the Council’s policy and have heard from the Case Officer and from Mr Khan. We also understand that the Police are, or have been,  involved in this matter since it involves, inter alia, allegations of dishonesty.

 

The facts of the case are straightforward. On 17 June 2021, Hackney Carriage Vehicle HCV014 underwent a vehicle compliance test at the Uttlesford District Council Depot in Saffron Walden, following a request made by Licensing Officers for a repeat test due to concerns over the numbers of advisories listed on the prior test which was taken at an independent testing station on 11 June 2021. The Hackney Carriage vehicle, owned by  ...  view the full minutes text for item LIC17