Agenda and minutes

Members are reminded of their responsibility to declare any pecuniary interest in respect of matters contained in this agenda.

If you have a pecuniary interest you must withdraw from the meeting. Normally you should leave the room before the business starts to be discussed. You do, however, have the same right to speak as a member of the public and may remain in the room to enable you to exercise that right and then leave immediately. In either case you must not seek to improperly influence a decision on the matter.

No declarations of any interests were received.

Hearing procedure for the meeting (enclosed)

The Chair outlined the hearing procedure that would be used to conduct the meeting.

To consider the exclusion of the press and public for the following items of business on the ground that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 1 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972.

By Virtue of Paragraph 1: Information relating to any individual.

Condition:

Information is exempt to the extent that, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

Information is not exempt if it relates to proposed development for which the local planning authority may grant itself planning permission pursuant to Regulation 3 of the Town & Country Planning General Regulations 1992(a).

RESOLVED - That the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the ground that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 1 of Part 1 of schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972.

Report of the Director of Public Protection, Streetscene and Community (enclosed)

The Sub Committee considered a report of the Director of Public Protection, Streetscene and Community to determine whether or not the applicant was a fit and proper person to hold Private Hire and Hackney Carriage Driver’s Licences under section 51 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 for the grant of a Private Hire Driver’s licence (PHD) and section 46 of the Town & Police Clauses Act 1847. 

The applicant made an application for Private Hire and Hackney Carriage Drivers Licences on 18 September 2014.  The applicant had successfully passed the Council’s Knowledge Test, DVLA Group II Medical, DSA Private Hire Driver and the DSA Wheelchair Test Assessment. 

The applicant’s DBS certificate contained information that had been disclosed at the discretion of the Chief Officer of Police.  The information provided was of a significant nature where officers had used their discretion to refer the decision to determine the application to the General Licensing Sub-Committee in accordance with the Council’s Safeguarding, Suitability and Convictions Statement of Policy for Taxi Licensing. 

Members were made aware that it was very rare and only in extreme cases where it was believed the nature of a person’s potential employment presented a potential risk to the public that the Chief Officer of Police would disclose information where the applicant had been found not guilty of the charges that were raised.

Members’ attention was drawn to the guidelines relating to the relevance of convictions, under the General Policy at Paragraph 5, and under the Specific Guidance on the Relevance of Offences and Convictions at paragraph b) Violence, Offences against adults and d) Sexual and indecency offences. 

The DBS disclosed information relating to the applicant being charged with rape and false imprisonment.  The applicant was found not guilty of the allegations on 2 February 2011 at Crown Court.

The applicant attended the meeting, along with his representative. 

The applicant attended the Council’s offices on 9 December 2015 to offer information in relation to his Private Hire and Hackney Carriage driving history and to give an account of the information that had been disclosed through his Disclosure and Barring Certificate.  The applicant stated that he had previously held a Private Hire Driver licence with X Council, this had been granted on 7 December 2005 and a Hackney Carriage Driver licence granted on 14 January 2009 by the same Council.  The applicant also held a Hackney Carriage Driver licence with Y Council granted on 15 October 2007, the above licences ran concurrently.  Y Council revoked the applicant`s Hackney Carriage Driver licence on 11 November 2008 following the report from the police of the applicant being on bail for rape.

X Council revoked the applicant’s Private Hire and Hackney Carriage driver licences on 15 December 2009 having received information from the police regarding the allegation of rape and a further complaint by a female passenger being terrified having been subject to sexual advances during a taxi journey conveyed by the applicant.  The applicant stated to officers that his Private Hire and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 16.LSC.54