Agenda and draft minutes

To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 12 September 2023.

The minutes of the meeting held on 12 September 2023  were taken as read, approved and signed by the Chair as correct.

Councillors are reminded of the need to declare any disclosable pecuniary interests that relate to business on the agenda and which have not already been included in the register of interests, before any discussion takes place on the item. Unless the interest is sensitive, you must also disclose the nature of the interest. In accordance with the Council's Code of Conduct, you must then leave the room and must not participate in any further discussion of the item.  Councillors requiring clarification should seek the advice of the Monitoring Officer prior to the day of the meeting.

No declarations of interest were made by Members.

To consider the report of the Service Lead - Environmental Health & Community Safety.

The Licensing Committee received the annual report for the proposed licensing fees and charges for 2024/25. The Committee had a statutory responsibility to set fees for the year which related to the cost of performing the various Licensing functions. Members were referred to appendices attached to the report, which listed all the fees levied by the Licensing Authority. The Service Lead - Environmental Health & Community Safety explained that Appendix A summarised the Council’s powers to set its fees in respect of licensing applications, and any limitations on those powers, and Appendix B listed all the fees levied by the Licensing Authority as of last year and the proposed fees for 2024/26. He highlighted:-

·         Exeter City Council’s (ECC) administrative duty to set fees;

·         how the fees relating to the Licensing Act and the Gambling Act were prescribed in law;

·         how fees could only be collected from a cost-recovery perspective as opposed to as a money-making enterprise;

·         the proposed change for street trading licences to a Part A / Part B system.

Responding to queries from Members, the Service Lead - Environmental Health & Community Safety explained that:- 

• with regard to the Part A / Part B approach for street trading, there was – presently - no exact comparison possible with other local authorities;
• the Part A / Part B system was long established in e.g. animal licensing;
• it was impossible to foresee potential rushes on certain types of licences;
• whilst increased fees were never welcomed by those that had to pay them, they did reflect the costs in delivering the respective licensing regimes.

RESOLVED that the proposed Fees and Charges for the period from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025 be approved, as set out in Appendix B of the report.