Agenda and draft minutes

Following the resignation of Councillor Staples from the Chairmanship, Committee will be asked to elect their Chairman.

Nominations were requested for the position of Chairman.

RESOLVED:

That Councillor Chris Mountain be appointed Chairman for the remainder of the municipal year.

In the event that the current Vice-Chairman is elected as Chairman, the Committee will be asked to elect a new Vice-Chairman.

Nominations were requested for the position of Vice-Chairman.

RESOLVED:

That Councillor Lina Savickiene be appointed Vice-Chairman for the remainder of the municipal year.

To sign and confirm the minutes of the last meeting.

The Minutes of the Licensing Committee meeting on 12 December 2023 were approved and signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

To receive apologies for absence.

Apologies were received from Councillors John Baxter and David Scoot.

To receive declarations of interests in respect of any item on the agenda.

No declarations of interest were received.

To answer any written questions received from members of the public no later than 5 p.m. two clear working days prior to the meeting – for this meeting the deadline is 5 p.m. on ………………..

There were none.

[Councillor Stephen Woodliffe entered the meeting at 14.03pm, following consideration of the above item.]

(A report by Anna McDowell – Senior Licensing Officer)

The Senior Licensing Officer presented the Committee with the proposed amendments to Boston Borough Council’s Taxi and Private Hire Licensing Guidance and Policy following consultation between 3^rd January 2024 and 8^th February 2024.

During the consultation period three submissions regarding the proposed policy were received, the feedback from which was detailed within the report.

The Committee was asked to consider the comments, discuss the options available, and to make any amendments and additions they deemed necessary to the policy, attached as Appendix A within the report, prior to adoption being requested at Full Council.

In response to a query regarding the expiry of fire extinguishers the Senior Licensing Officer advised that several Councils had sought legal advice in respect of best practice which was that carriers should be fully trained to use the equipment. As a result of this many Councils had chosen to remove the requirement.

The Senior Licensing Officer stated that in respect of issuing penalty points a case by case system would be implemented, to which full discretion would be used.

Members discussed and agreed alternative wording to paragraph 4.2.2 (page 25) in respect of Vehicle Age – emission standards and paragraph 4.8.2 (page 27) in respect of MOT Test - defect advisories, within Appendix A.

The Committee made the following comments:

·       Thanks were given to the Senior Licensing Officer for tidying up the Policy document. 

·       Extending the change of address to 21 days was reasonable.

·       Remove the requirement for a fire extinguisher.

·       The requirement of an MOT for vehicles under 6 months old was necessary to protect drivers and officers.

·       Not all garages were VAT registered. Accountability of a repair was important.

RESOLVED:

That Boston Borough Council’s Taxi and Private Hire Licensing Guidance and Policy be presented to Full Council for adoption, subject to the following amendments:

·       Point 5 – Agree the change of address to 21 days.

·       Point 8 – Remove the requirement for a fire extinguisher.

·       Reword Paragraph 4.2.2 (page 25 within Appendix A), Vehicle Age – emission standards, as follows:

“The Council will not licence a new petrol or diesel powered vehicle that was registered prior to September 2015 unless that vehicle meets Euro 6 emissions standards. Vehicles already licensed at the date of this policy’s adoption will only be relicensed for a maximum of 3 additional years.”

·       Reword Paragraph 4.8.2 (page 25 within Appendix A), MOT Test - defect advisories, as follows:

“Where an MOT test contains advisory notes for vehicle defects and the Council deems them to have a detrimental effect on the safety of passengers, and drivers, a rectification notice will be issued. A rectification notice is a formal written notice issued by an Authorised Officer to the proprietor of a licensed vehicle giving details of the defects requiring repair. The notice will specify the maximum period of time in which those defects must be rectified by a vehicle service and repair centre. Upon receipt of satisfactory proof of remedial works, rectification notices will be lifted.”