Agenda and minutes

Councillor Buswell was appointed as Chair for this meeting.

No declarations of interest were made by Members.

To pass the following resolution:

RESOLVED that, under Section 100A (4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting for items 4, 5 and 6 on the grounds that if involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 1 and 2 of Part I of Schedule 12A of the Act.

To consider the report of the Environmental Health and Licensing Manager.

The Chair introduced the Sub-Committee and the Solicitor set out the procedure for the hearing advising of the Council’s policy and the statutory requirements under the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976.

The Principal Licensing Officer presented an application which sought to replace their existing Euro 5 side loading wheelchair accessible vehicle with a rear loading wheelchair accessible vehicle. The proposed vehicle was first registered in April 2016, making the vehicle 3 years and 8 months old and the matter could not be dealt with under delegated powers. The Applicant had provided a copy of the MOT certificate and a comprehensive vehicle inspection report to the Licensing Authority.

The Applicant proposed to convert to a rear loading wheelchair accessible Peugeot Partner which could seat four passengers.

The Council’s Policy stated that for all new vehicles plated for the first time by the Council (including existing proprietors on the change of vehicle), proprietors would be required to comply with the following condition(s):-

·         No vehicle shall be licensed as a Hackney carriage vehicle unless it is wheelchair accessible and is of a design that will provide wheelchair access to the Hackney carriage via a side door;

·         A Road Tax Band A (CO2 emission standard) ultra-low emission vehicle (ULEV) with a manufacturer’s stated emission standard of 75g/km or less, or

·         ZEV vehicle (zero emissions i.e. all electric vehicle) will not be required to be wheelchair accessible.

In addition the Council’s current policy was to prioritise applications for side loading wheelchair accessible vehicles with the aim of maintaining the proportion of rear and side loading wheelchair accessible Hackney carriages at 50% each respectively. Applications for rear loading wheelchair accessible vehicles will therefore only be invited when the proportion of side loading vehicles is equal to or exceeds 50% of the wheelchair accessible vehicles on the fleet.

Vehicles currently issued with a licence by the Council would be required to comply with the following conditions:-

·         All vehicles currently licensed that do not comply with the new vehicle requirements stated above will be required to change the vehicle to one that does comply by 01 January 2020. Any vehicle licensed at this time that does not meet the specification may be suspended until such time as compliance is achieved;

·         The number of persons licensed to be carried shall be exhibited outside the vehicle on the Vehicle Licence Plate issued by the Council; and

·         Exemption to point 1 above - Existing rear loading Euro 5 emission standard wheelchair accessible vehicles will be required to be replaced with either a rear OR a side loading Euro 6 emission standard model by 01 January 2020.

The Policy recognised that rear loading wheelchair accessible vehicles would be appropriate for certain circumstances but sought a balance between rear loading and side loading models.

The Applicant was in attendance and spoke in support of the application. He explained that he operated a wheelchair accessible taxi company for over 20 years, which managed a fleet of nine vehicles. The Applicant had a contract  ...  view the full minutes text for item 65.

To consider the report of the Environmental Health and Licensing Manager.

The Chair introduced the Sub-Committee and the Solicitor set out the procedure for the hearing advising of the Council’s policy and the requirements under Section 48(1) of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976.

The Principal Licensing Officer presented an application which sought to replace their existing Euro 5 side loading wheelchair accessible vehicle with a rear loading wheelchair accessible vehicle, which was considered to be less physically demanding for the Applicant. The proposed vehicle was a Ford Tourneo Journey, which had not yet been purchased, pending the consideration of the application by the Licensing Sub Committee.

The proposed vehicle was first registered in April 2016, making the vehicle 3 years and 8 months old. The matter could not be dealt with under delegated powers. The Applicant had provided a copy of the MOT certificate and a comprehensive vehicle inspection report to the Licensing Authority.

The Council’s Policy stated that for all new vehicles plated for the first time by the Council (including existing proprietors on the change of vehicle), proprietors would be required to comply with the following condition(s):-

·         No vehicle shall be licensed as a Hackney carriage vehicle unless it is wheelchair accessible and is of a design that will provide wheelchair access to the Hackney carriage via a side door;

·         A Road Tax Band A (CO2 emission standard) ultra-low emission vehicle (ULEV) with a manufacturer’s stated emission standard of 75g/km or less; or

·         ZEV vehicle (zero emissions i.e. all electric vehicle) will not be required to be wheelchair accessible.

The policy also stated that the Council’s current policy was to prioritise applications for side loading wheelchair accessible vehicles with the aim of maintaining the proportion of rear and side loading wheelchair accessible Hackney carriages at 50% each respectively. Applications for rear loading wheelchair accessible vehicles will therefore only be invited when the proportion of side loading vehicles is equal to or exceeds 50% of the wheelchair accessible vehicles on the fleet.

Vehicles currently issued with a licence by the Council would be required to comply with the following conditions:-

·         All vehicles currently licensed that do not comply with the new vehicle requirements stated above will be required to change the vehicle to one that does comply by 01 January 2020. Any vehicle licensed at this time that does not meet the specification may be suspended until such time as compliance is achieved;

·         The number of persons licensed to be carried shall be exhibited outside the vehicle on the Vehicle Licence Plate issued by the Council; and

·         Exemption to point 1 above - Existing rear loading Euro 5 emission standard wheelchair accessible vehicles will be required to be replaced with either a rear OR a side loading Euro 6 emission standard model by 01 January 2020.

The Policy recognised that rear loading wheelchair accessible vehicles would be appropriate for certain circumstances but sought a balance between rear loading and side loading models.

The Applicant was in attendance and spoke in support of the application. He explained that he  ...  view the full minutes text for item 66.

To consider the report of the Environmental Health and Licensing Manager.

The Chair introduced the Licensing Sub Committee Members and Officers.

The Applicant had been referred to the Licensing Sub Committee to determine if he was a fit and proper person to hold a licence to drive a Hackney Carriage/Private Hire Vehicle.

The Solicitor set out the procedure for the hearing and explained Section 51 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 stating that the Licensing Authority must be satisfied that a driver is a fit and proper person to hold a licence to drive a Hackney Carriage/Private Hire Vehicle.

The Solicitor stated that evidential burden is on the applicant to prove fitness and proprietary on the balance of probabilities. Every case before the Licensing Sub-Committee was heard on its individual merits and the main concern of the Licensing Sub-Committee was the safety of the travelling public.

The Principal Licensing Officer presented the report and gave evidence in respect of the application. The Applicant was in attendance, accompanied by a representative and spoke in support of the application.

RESOLVED that the Licensing Sub-committee was satisfied that the Applicant was a fit and proper person to hold a driver’s licence for a Hackney Carriage/Private Hire Vehicle.