Minutes

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on 30 January 2020 be confirmed.

No declarations of interest were received.

RESOLVED that the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following item(s) of business because it is likely that if members of the public were present there would be a disclosure to them of ‘exempt information’ as defined by Section 100I and Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972.

The Licensing Officer:

a)    presented a report to determine whether the applicant was a fit and proper person to hold a Private Hire driver’s licence.

b)    reported that the application had applied in October 2018 for a new Private Hire driver’s licence.

c)    reported that the applicant held a full UK driving licence which he had held since November 2003 and currently had three penalty points recorded against him.

d)    reported that the applicant had passed the knowledge test on his second attempt scoring 8/10 in January 2019.

e)    reported that the applicant had received a low risk on the driver improvement course on his first attempt in November 2018.

f)     reported that the applicant had provided a certificate of good conduct from Bangladesh in December 2019 and had also allowed officers to re-check his DBS certificate which he had provided to the Council in December 2018 online. No convictions were recorded.

g)    reported that at the initial application in October 2018 he was aware of the applicant after East Lindsey District Council had made a request for information in relation to the applicant working within Lincoln in his Hackney Carriage vehicle through a Lincoln Private Hire operator. This was against East Lindsey District Council’s intended use policy where the Hackney Carriage vehicle must be used predominantly within their boundary where the vehicle was licensed.

h)    reported that the applicant was referred to a sub-committee at East Lindsey District Council where a decision was made to revoke his licence.

i)     reported that he had requested information from East Lindsey District Council on the applicant, which was detailed at Appendix B to the report. This detailed that the applicant was the holder of a premises licence in Horncastle and that in August 2014 the licence had been revoked as a result of poor record keeping and that an immigration offender had been found on the premises, a matter which had been dealt with by UK Border Agency Officers.

j)     reported that the applicant was referred to a Licensing Committee at East Lindsey District Council in June 2015 in relation to a history of penalty points on his licence for speeding. He was required to undertake the driving assessment by the Lincolnshire Road Safety Partnership and he achieved a low risk whilst being issued with a warning.

k)    reported that the applicant was the holder of a Private Hire operator’s licence from July 2012, however, in 2017 compliance officers at East Lindsey District Council had found that the applicant had failed to keep correct records of Private Hire bookings and also evidence of illegal plying for hire in his Private Hire vehicle. The applicant was therefore committing offences under the Town Police Clauses Act 1847 and Local Government Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1976 for which he could have been prosecuted.

l)     reported that in July 2017 East Lindsey District Council had revoked the applicant’s Private Hire Operator’s licence. The applicant had lodged and appeal but this was withdrawn on the day of the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 38.