Agenda and draft minutes

An apology for absence was received on behalf of Councillor Anne Clarke.

To note any urgent items of business which the Chairman has consented to being considered under the provisions of Section 100(B) 4(b) of the Local Government Act 1972.

There were no urgent items of business to be considered.

Members should declare the existence and nature of any Disclosable Pecuniary Interest and Non Statutory Interest as defined by the Members’ Code of Conduct in respect of:

a)  any business on the agenda;

b)  any urgent additional items to be considered;

c)  any matters arising out of those items;

and if appropriate, withdraw from the meeting at the relevant time.

There were no declarations of interest made.

To consider the minutes of the last meeting held on 22^nd February 2024.

Moved by Councillor Rita Turner and seconded by Councillor Mary Dooley

RESOLVED that the minutes of a General Licensing Committee held on 22^nd February 2024 be approved as a correct record.

The Environmental Health Team Manager for Licensing explained the Council was responsible for the licensing and regulation of Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Vehicles, Drivers, and Operators under the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 and the Town Police Clauses Act 1847.

In line with regulation 2(6) of the Local Authority (Functions and Responsibilities) (England) Regulations 2000, fee setting for taxi licensing was a non-Executive function of the Council and decisions were to be taken by the Committee.

Current taxi licensing fees were no longer sufficient to recover costs, resulting in the joint Environmental Health Service conducting a comprehensive review.  A table of proposed fee calculations was attached as Appendix 1.

Benchmarking showed that the proposed fees remained competitive with neighbouring local authorities.  A comparison table was attached as Appendix 2.

Any proposed variation of fees had to be advertised in a local newspaper and displayed at the Council so they could be readily seen by the public.  The Council had to allow at least 28 days for comments to be made on the proposed variation.  A draft notice was attached as Appendix 3.

Modifying the fees would ensure the Licensing Service remained cost neutral and recovered all reasonable costs.  If the Council retained the current fees, an operating loss would occur for most licence types.  For others it could result in overcharging.

To a question on the financial arrangements of holding Sub Committees, the Environmental Health Team Manager for Licensing informed that the holding of Sub Committees was part of the financial calculation and so costs (e.g., Licensing Officer time, Legal, Governance, room hire, maintenance, etc.) were included in the fees.

It was reiterated that any shortfall of revenue was covered by the Council.  Subsidising fees across different licences was also not an option.  Any changes to legislation, whether national or local (e.g., the Taxi Licensing Policy: Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Vehicle (CCTV Supplement)) increased costs.  When prosecutions of unlicenced activity occurred, there would be attempts to recover costs in Court.

The Chair sought more information on the checks the Licensing Enforcement Team carried out in their role to monitor licence holders.  The Environmental Health Team Manager for Licensing agreed to provide detailed information on applications, complaints, and interim checks at the next Committee meeting.

Of note was the time it took to carry out paper checks (e.g., DVLA, DBS, and medical checks could take months to complete).

To a further question on physical checks being carried out, the Environmental Health Team Manager for Licensing informed that local authorities would coordinate at larger sites where activity occurred (e.g., East Midlands Airport).  The District had no large town centre, and so had to coordinate with other local authorities at key regional sites.

A previous shortage of Enforcement Officers had also affected capacity to conduct physical checks.

To a question on Derbyshire Constabulary’s participation in enforcement efforts, the Environmental Health Team Manager for Licensing noted communication was constantly improving; if the police requested CCTV evidence, the Council always tried to  ...  view the full minutes text for item GLC5-24/25