Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence and declarations of interest.

There were no apologies for absence or declarations of interest.

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

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

Due to the absence of the driver, the Chair announced that Agenda Item 3 (Review of a Private Hire/Hackney Carriage Driver's Licence) would be heard last.

To review an existing Private Hire Drivers Licence.

The Licensing and Compliance Manager gave a summary of the report which requested that members determine whether the Driver was “Fit and Proper” to continue to hold a Private Hire and Hackney Carriage Driver’s Licence.

In response to questions from the Panel, the officer confirmed that the Driver had returned their Private Hire Driver Licence to the Licensing Team, following the notice of suspension. The date of the offense was also confirmed.

The Driver addressed the Panel and provided an account around the circumstances in which they were charged with the assault of an emergency worker. They explained that the offence took place during a period of mental health crisis.

He had pled not guilty in court to the charge of assault, and it was subsequently downgraded to assault of an emergency worker. He was advised by his legal representation to pay the fine as the conviction would be spent after a year. He was also advised against appealing, as the legal costs would outweigh the cost of the fine.

In response to questions from the Panel, the Driver confirmed that the police had been called to his home as he had self-harmed. He was initially charged with Assault by Beating; however this was downgraded by the Magistrates Courts once the police body cam footage was reviewed.

After the trial, the Driver’s solicitor had advised him that once the fine had been paid, the charge would not show up on anything after a year. He was not informed that it would still affect his DBS.

The Driver also confirmed that he did not have any orders against him under the Mental Health Act.

The Driver summarised that he wished that it hadn’t happen and had since received help through the NHS Mental Health Services. He said that they had never had any complaints or problems in their driving job, and his operator was looking forward to having him back.

Meeting adjourned 13:23

The meeting reconvened at 13:48

DECISION NOTICE

The matter before the Panel today is for a review of HC/PHV driver’s licence.  The licence was administratively suspended in April 2023 and today we are required to decide whether that suspension should be lifted, enabling the Driver to return to driving or whether that licence should be revoked with immediate effect in the interests of public safety. Our choice is binary in this case and most important of all, we are charged with determining whether the Driver is considered ‘fit and proper’ to continue holding the licence.

We first consider the provisions of Part II of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976. S 51 thereof states :

51(1) Subject to the provisions of this Part of the Act, a district council shall, on the receipt of an application from any person for the grant to that person of a licence to drive private hire vehicles, grant to that person a driver’s licence:

Provided that a district council shall not grant a licence

(a)            Unless they are satisfied

(i)              That  ...  view the full minutes text for item LIC26

To determine an application for a Private Hire and Hackney Carriage Drivers Licence.

The Licensing Support Officer gave a summary of their report which requested that members determine an application for a Private Hire Drivers Licence.

In response to questions from the Panel, it was confirmed that there were no active points on the applicant’s DVLA Drivers Licence as these had now expired. However, the previous points would be retained on the Licence for period of 4 years.

The applicant addressed the Panel and said that he had never been dishonest and did not intend to deceive on his application form. He confirmed that both he and his potential employer had checked the DVLA website at the time of submitting the application and there were no points displayed. 

He explained that the points were as a result of a problem with his previous employer. He had notified the company of a change of address but the letters informing him of speeding offenses in vehicles in his name were sent to the wrong address. He attended court with the driver who had been driving at the time of the offences, but as it had been 6 months since the offence, the points were given to him.

He said that he had never committed any other offences before or after the ones disclosed and that he wasn’t his intention to mislead. He was sorry for any offence caused and, if a licence was granted, he would never be seen before the Panel again.

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

• There were two separate MS90 offenses disclosed, along with an SP10. The Driver confirmed that the MS90s were both separate vehicles which were both driven by different drivers. The SP10 was due to driving at 71mph, in a 60mph limit.
• After moving from the previous address, the Driver had done a one-month redirection with the Post Office and informed relevant parties, including his employer of the change of address. However, his employer did not update his file and continued to forward the fines to the old address. They had only found out about the point on the licence when they were unable to rent a minibus.
• The Driver leased a number of vehicles from his previous employer, and he employed the drivers directly. Letters regarding any fines or offenses committed in the vehicles were sent to Head Office, who then forwarded them to him to deal with. As he had not received the letters, he was unable to inform the DVLA that he was not driving the vehicle and the points were added to his licence, as the registered owner.

Meeting adjourned at 14:20

The meeting reconvened at 14:50

DECISION NOTICE

The matter before the Panel today is an application for a new HC/PHV driver’s licence. If he is successful today he has an offer of engagement.

This application is made under Part II of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976. S 51 thereof states :

51(1) Subject to the provisions of this Part of the Act, a district  ...  view the full minutes text for item LIC27

To determine an application for a Private Hire Drivers Licence.

The Licensing Support Officer gave a summary of their report which requested that members determine an application for a Private Hire Drivers Licence.

The applicant addressed the Panel and provided a detailed account of the circumstances around the matters which had been disclosed by the police on his DBS, including a serious allegation of sexual misconduct made against him, a custodial sentence under the Misuse of Drugs Act and a caution for Common Assault.

In response to questions from the Panel, the applicant confirmed that he had previously been convicted for the possession of cannabis and served a short jail sentence for this. He explained that the Common Assault charge related to swearing in a heated argument. 

Further questions were asked in regards to the events surrounding the serious allegation of sexual misconduct made against him and the Driver responded with his version of events.

Meeting adjourned at 15:18

The meeting reconvened at 15:34

DECISION NOTICE

The matter before the Panel today is an application for a new HC/PHV driver’s licence. If he is successful today he has an offer of engagement.

This application is made under Part II of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976. S 51 thereof states :

51(1) Subject to the provisions of this Part of the Act, a district council shall, on the receipt of an application from any person for the grant to that person of a licence to drive private hire vehicles, grant to that person a driver’s licence:

Provided that a district council shall not grant a licence

(a)            Unless they are satisfied

(i)              That the applicant is a fit and proper person to hold a driver’s licence.

It is this we must decide today.

We have had the opportunity of reading the officer’s report in this case, a copy of which has been served on the Driver and we have also seen, as has he, the background documents annexed thereto. These reveal a number of very serious matters, including a serious allegation of sexual misconduct made against him, a custodial sentence under the Misuse of Drugs Act and a caution for common assault. He also held a licence issued by Transport for London which was revoked by them because of the indecent assault allegation we have previously referred to, plus non-compliance matters.  None of these were listed in his application and we are specifically reminded that the Rehabilitation of Offenders legislation does not apply to taxi and PHV driving.

In considering this application, we are mindful of the provisions of the Council’s Suitability Policy, a copy of which is before us. Appendix A contains the relevant details, and we quote them here:

2.5 Generally, where a person has more than one conviction, this will raise serious questions about their safety and suitability. The licensing authority is looking for safe and suitable individuals, and once a pattern or trend of repeated offending is apparent, a licence will not be granted or renewed.

2.9 A driver has direct responsibility for the safety  ...  view the full minutes text for item LIC28

To determine an application for a Private Hire Drivers Licence.

The Licensing Support Officer gave a summary of their report which requested that members determine an application for a Private Hire Drivers Licence

The applicant addressed the Panel and provided them with an account regarding a number of serious allegations of sexual misconduct which had been disclosed on his DBS.

He explained that since the year of the first two entries on the DBS, he had applied for a number of jobs and has been refused because of those entries. These applications had included roles in the NHS, schools and taxi licences from other authorities.

He stated that in the case of all the allegations made against him, there had been no convictions. In the first two instances, the complaints were dropped and in the last one he was found not guilty in court.

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

• The first two allegations made against him were colleagues at his work. They were investigated both by the police and the employer, but he was not convicted.
• The third complaint was at a separate workplace, but the allegations were of a similar nature. Following an internal investigation which cleared him of misconduct, the complainant went to the police and the case went to court. He was acquitted following the inability of a jury to decide on a verdict.

The Driver said that he had not received a letter from the DBS to invite him to provide representations prior to disclosure of the allegations to the Council and he was not asked for evidence by officers in advance of the hearing. He produced a certificate of acquittal before the Panel which was the first time it had been seen by the Council.

Meeting adjourned at 16:05

The meeting reconvened at 16:18

DECISION NOTICE

The matter before the Panel today is an application for a new PHV driver’s licence. No information has been provided regarding the operator for whom he intends to drive and this of itself is somewhat worrying in the light of what the Driver said to us today.

This application is made under Part II of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976. S 51 thereof states :

51(1) Subject to the provisions of this Part of the Act, a district council shall, on the receipt of an application from any person for the grant to that person of a licence to drive private hire vehicles, grant to that person a driver’s licence:

Provided that a district council shall not grant a licence

(a)            Unless they are satisfied

(i)              That the applicant is a fit and proper person to hold a driver’s licence.

It is this we must decide today.

We have had the opportunity of reading the officer’s report in this case, a copy of which has been served on the Driver and we have also seen, as has he, the background documents annexed thereto. The enhanced DBS Certificate reveals a number of very serious matters, including several serious allegations of sexual  ...  view the full minutes text for item LIC29

To review an existing Private Hire and Hackney Carriage Driver’s Licence.

The Licensing and Compliance Officer gave a summary of their report which requested that members determine whether the Driver was “Fit and Proper” to continue to hold a Private Hire and Hackney Carriage Driver’s Licence.

The officer confirmed that the Private Hire/Hackney Carriage Driver's Licence was still in place and the Driver continued to work for their operator. 

The Driver addressed the Panel and provided an account surrounding her recent conviction of criminal damage. She maintains that she was wrongly convicted and was pursuing an appeal. In addition, the Criminal Cases Review Commission has accepted the referral of her case.

In response to questions from the Panel, the Driver clarified that the flag in question was an A4 piece of paper with a depiction of a gay pride flag. She was unsure how long the poster had been put up for, however she believed that it was the same day, and her actions were in response to the dog getting agitated.

She highlighted that she had a difficult relationship with the neighbour in question, so did not ask them to remove it at the time.

Meeting adjourned at 16:49

Meeting reconvened at 17:10

DECISION NOTICE

The matter before the Panel today is for a review of HC/PHV driver’s licence. This hearing was adjourned from 7^th August to enable her to attend. She duly did so and without hearing from her we would not have been able to arrive at a fair determination of this matter.

We are charged with determining whether she is considered ‘fit and proper’ to continue holding the licence, and depending on our determination upon that issue, we may impose any of the following sanctions:

(a)            No further action

(b)            A suspension of the licence for a prescribed period

(c)             Revocation of the licence

We first consider the provisions of Part II of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976. S 51 thereof states

51(1) Subject to the provisions of this Part of the Act, a district council shall, on the receipt of an application from any person for the grant to that person of a licence to drive private hire vehicles, grant to that person a driver’s licence:

Provided that a district council shall not grant a licence

(i)              Unless they are satisfied

(a)            That the applicant is a fit and proper person to hold a driver’s licence.

This responsibility is ongoing and whether the Driver remains a fit and proper person is what we must decide today.

S61 goes on to state:

A district council may suspend or revoke a driver’s licence for:

(i)              That since the grant of the licence he has-

(i)              Been convicted of an offence involving dishonesty, indecency or violence: or

(ii)             Been convicted of an offence under or has failed to comply with the provisions of the Act of 1847 or of this part of the Act: or

(ii)             Any other reasonable cause.

In the event of a licence being revoked a driver has the right of appeal to  ...  view the full minutes text for item LIC30