Miscellaneous Licensing Committee - 15 August 2025

The Miscellaneous Licensing Committee began the meeting by confirming the minutes of the 18 July 2025 session, a motion moved by Councillor Batters and seconded by Councillor Parsonage, and resolved that the minutes be signed by the Chairman. The Chairman, seconded by the Vice‑Chairman, ordered that the press and public be excluded from the portion of the meeting dealing with exempt information under the Local Government Act 1972. A two‑minute silence was observed at 12 pm to mark the 80th anniversary of VJ Day, and the Committee adjourned for lunch from 1 pm to 1:33 pm.

The Committee examined two applications for Hackney Carriage vehicles that did not meet the Council’s Statement of Practices, Procedures and Policy. For application CV46, members found the rear‑seat width insufficient and, after viewing the vehicle, resolved that the application be refused. For application CV47, the roof sign contained the wording “JJS” in addition to “Taxi”, which was deemed non‑compliant; the motion was passed to refuse this application as well.

A series of licence‑holder reviews were then considered. Formal written warnings were issued to the holders of licences EV21, EV22 and driver’s licence E1D211 after they each acknowledged a one‑off lapse in concentration involving mobile‑phone distraction; the Committee concluded that none of them should be suspended or have their licences revoked. Conversely, applications for licences E1D212, WD208 and WD207 were dealt with more stringently: E1D212 and WD208 were refused because the applicants had accumulated nine penalty points and, in the case of WD208, failed to disclose the endorsements, breaching policy that requires a five‑year period before a licence can be granted to a driver with seven or more points. The WD207 application was deferred to the 12 September 2025 meeting to allow the applicant to attend.

The Committee granted a licence to applicant CD285 despite a recent conviction, determining that the applicant was a fit and proper person after considering mitigating information and guidance from HR Safeguarding; the decision involved a departure from the standard policy. In contrast, CD286’s licence was revoked with immediate effect under Section 61(2B) of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976, on the grounds of recent convictions for driving without due care and attention, multiple speed‑limit endorsements, and an accident, which the Committee judged rendered the holder unfit to hold a licence.

Overall, the Committee’s actions reflected a consistent emphasis on adhering to statutory standards and council policy, while allowing discretion where individual circumstances justified it. All decisions were recorded as resolutions, and the meeting concluded with the noted adjournment for lunch.