Agenda item

Barry Drinkwater – Chairman, ULODA

First apologies from Doug Perry, ULODA's Hon President, currently recovering from what he describes as a minor medical procedure yesterday.  Also from Murray Hardy, Andy's Head of Human Resources - who is also with his approval a member of ULODA's executive committee.

If Doug was here to speak to you I know he would want to say how pleased he has been to continue to be an influence in all trade matters with the council.  As you know from previous meetings, he and I have made regular public statements to this committee as well to Cabinet and Scrutiny about Enforcement and the Licensing Policy review.  We'd hoped that Tony Cobden would have tonight presented the results of the peer review which Oliver Rawlings has fronted so very ably as far as the trade is concerned, but sadly this is not to be and we look forward to hearing about it at your April meeting.  We understand that a presentation was made to officers last week and we would love to have been a fly on the wall.  It's good to see that Marcus Watts has reported to you on Enforcement and this will enable us to update ULODA's historical analysis of trends at a time when we have already seen and sensed a lighter hand on officers' part, with advice and education the key elements going forward.

Turning to your meaty agenda this evening!   Let me concentrate on Amanda's report on Licence Fees.  First, it's not unexpected!  The Licensing Reserve was due to be exhausted and this in itself means no further funds to discount operator, driver and vehicle fees.  One question you may like to ask officers on our behalf please:  Amanda says in para 7 of her report that the final £17.000 in the reserve has been used to fund the licensing operational deficit in 2016/17.  I'm not an accountant but I can't see how it has been applied or where it appears in Appendix A??  Yes, it appears like an orphan in the box at the foot of the page, but where is it in the Licensing Accounts?

We are delighted to see the continuing emphasis on keeping costs to an absolute minimum (mentioned in Amanda's Risk Analysis).  We do acknowledge the need to increase for example staffing costs, presumably (and hopefully) to reflect an increase in Amanda's Licensing Team to cope with Right to Work checks .... and the rest!

It's true to say all of us in the trade want to see service levels optimised.  Andy will speak to this and I know Murray would have done at the sharp end for 24x7!!  

The one item in Licensing costs which continues to grate with your trade leaders is the inclusion of Enforcement (in Appendix A).  We have long argued that the legislation entitles the council to recover the costs of licensing administration - but not, we are reliably informed by the NPHTA, the costs of Enforcement.  Yet here they are again, along with some new projected cost items in Appendix C - cautions and prosecution work??   How are these justified, we ask, and invite you to ask too.

We very much hope your preparations for this evening's meeting include several such questions for officers.  We also hope you will NOT approve the proposed increases until both you - and importantly we too - are satisfied that they are fair, reasonable and justified.  When given the chance to have our say in our annual review meetings with officers since 2010, we have always reviewed the accounts and the budget for Licensing through forensic eyes, and always with an eye to agreeing to them.  

Thank you, Chairman and members. We will enjoy listening to your discussions this evening as usual!  Over to you, Andy.

Barry Drinkwater

Chairman, ULODA

Uttlesford Licensed Operators & Drivers Association

24 January, 2018

Andy Mahoney – Managing Director, 24x7 Ltd

My comments on tonight's main agenda items:

3.  Fees

Robert Sinnott, Barry and I led the trade in discussions with the council in 2008/09 when MP proposed an increase of 29%. 

We all agreed the discussions then under cllr Doug Perry's chairmanship of the licensing task group were excellent.

It was proved beyond doubt that operators, proprietors and drivers had been overcharged in their licence fees....

The outcome was that it was agreed (a) they should be repaid by discounting  licence fees through the licensing reserve and (b) the trade delegation would help make sure such overcharging never ever happened again.

From 2010 we had regular annual convivial discussions with officers - including the accountant - to check that items in the licensing budget were (a) correctly apportioned to the trade and (b) fair and reasonable.  These meetings continued for 5 years until 2016 when mp retired.  Every year he and we (including Richard) signed off the budget and accounts.  We understood the costs and agreed they were correct, fair and reasonable.  MP recommended the annual reviews  should continue but sadly they have fallen away, though not for want of trying on our part at the highest levels in the council.

With the licensing reserve now exhausted, we do accept there needs to be an increase in licence fees.  We have only seen amanda's proposals since tonight's agenda was published.  May we please ask for a meeting with officers in the next week to go through the numbers with a view to approving them, not objecting.  For example, one item is about right to work checks properly carried out by members of the licensing team.  We are suffering long delays in arranging these.  This is having a considerable impact on our schools business at 24x7.  We assume that the projected increase in staffing costs shown in appendix a ''hides'' an increase in staff in the licensing team - we hope so in the interests of ongoing business success.  Another point I must make about appendix b:   the proposed 73.9% increase in the vehicle licence transfer fee requires very careful consideration....... 

Finally, there are some new cost items such as cautions and prosecution work,

which we need to get our heads around.  If as we believe we are moving into an era of informal enforcement with advice and education as the key elements, why is this work being allowed to be itemised?

4.  The equality act - sections 165 and 167

We support Jo's recommendation that there should be a voluntary published list of operators and proprietors happy to have their wavs included.  I am very happy for 24x7 to set the example by making vehicles available for public hire.  I have drivers trained to work with the disabled.  I'm also happy to rent out my vehicles to other operators for such work.

AOB.  Uber.  Steve Garlick of the GMBU trade union is suggesting he and i approach the council with a view to having uber's UDC operator's licence challenged.  It was originally granted correctly by the council in mp's time.  Uloda have suggested to officers more than once that uber's operating base in Uttlesford should be paid an uninvited visit by enforcement.

Andy Mahoney

Managing Director

24x7 Group

Stansted Airport