Agenda, decisions and minutes

None.

To authorise the Chairman to sign the minutes of the meeting held on 7 November 2011.

The minutes of the meeting held on 7 November 2011 were agreed as a correct record, subject to the following amendments:

·         Page 5, 3^rd paragraph – substitute a rent to are not

·         Page 7, sentence beginning Oct 30,1999 – delete the word the

The Licensing Committee RECOMMENDED to the Environmental Services Portfolio Holder that the Gambling Act 2005 Policy as attached to the agenda be approved for consultation and subsequent ratification and adoption by Council.

The Environmental Services Portfolio Holder AGREED that the Gambling Act 2005 statement of Policy, as attached, be approved for consultation.

As a requirement of Government legislation, councils must review their Gambling Policy Statements every three years. The Licensing Officer informed the Committee that there were no changes to the existing policy, however, consultation would be carried out with the following bodies:

·         the Police

·         persons carrying on gambling businesses in the area

·          those persons who appear to the council to represent the interests of persons who are likely to be affected, and

·         Parish Councils

It was noted that a comprehensive overview of the Gambling Policy was undertaken by the Licensing Committee in 2009.

The Licensing Committee RECOMMENDED to the Environmental Services Portfolio Holder that the Gambling Act 2005 Policy as attached to the agenda be approved for consultation and subsequent ratification and adoption by Council.

The Licensing Committee RECOMMENDED to the Environmental Services Portfolio Holder that the response to the Law Commission’s Taxi Reform consultation agreed at the meeting, be submitted to the Law Commission as South Cambridgeshire District Council’s formal response.

The Environmental Services Portfolio Holder approved the consultation response and submitted it to the Law Commission as the formal response by South Cambridgeshire District Council.

The Licensing Officer presented the report and informed the Licensing Committee that on the proposal of the Department for Transport, the Law Commission had undertaken a law reform project on the law of taxis and private hire vehicles. It was anticipated that following the consultation process and preparation of a Draft Bill, new legislation would become effective in 2015.

Attached to the agenda papers were a list of provisional proposals / questions to the consultation document. The Licensing Committee were invited to consider and agree responses to those proposals as shown in italicised text. Additional text added as a result of the discussion held at the meeting is shown in bold italic.

CHAPTER 13 - OVERVIEW OF PROVISIONAL REFORM PROPOSALS

Provisional proposal 1

Regulation should continue to distinguish between taxis, which can accept pre-booked fares, be hailed on the street and wait at ranks, and private hire vehicles, which can only accept pre-booked fares. (Page 160)

This authority would consider itself to be biased in respect of this question as over 95% of its licensed vehicles are Private Hire only. However, it would question the need for a 2-tier system which restricts the operation of a certain group and would ask the commission to consider “what the customer wants”, which, we would respectfully suggest is the ability to book or hail a safe vehicle at an affordable cost. Surely it should be the discretion of the person running his or her business to decide whether they concentrate on one style of work or another or indeed both?

CHAPTER 14 – REFORM OF DEFINITIONS AND SCOPE

Provisional proposal 2

London should be included, with appropriate modifications, within the scope of reform. (Page 162)

It would be unfair of this authority to dictate what another area such as London should do, however, we would expect that the Commission should see a clear evidenced based argument indicating why or why not they should be treated differently from the rest of the UK

Provisional proposal 3

The regulation of taxi and private hire vehicles should not be restricted to any particular type of vehicle but should rather focus on road transport services provided for hire with the services of a driver. (Page 164)

Provided that public safety continues to be the overriding consideration for licensing any vehicle then particular types should not be excluded. Each vehicle should be considered on its individual merits.

Question 4

Would there be (and if so what) advantages to restricting licensing to motor vehicles that require a driving licence? (Page 164)

The Council assume this refers to “pedicab” type vehicles? Again it would ask that each type of vehicle is considered on its own merits and possibly the nature of the area that it intends to operate. Anyone who holds a licence should have a driver’s licence which indicates knowledge of road awareness

Provisional proposal 5

Public service vehicles should be expressly excluded from the definition of taxi and private hire vehicles; and taxi and private hire vehicles should  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.