Agenda and minutes

No declarations of interest were received.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Marriott, S Niblock, Redihough and Rayner.

RESOLVED –

That the Minutes of the meeting of the Appeals and Regulatory Committee held on 29 June, 2022 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

The Licensing Manager presented a report on a proposed amendment to the Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy relating to good conduct certificates.

Under the current policy, applicants from other countries were required to provide a Certificate of Good Conduct from the embassy of every country where they had been domiciled before entering the UK. Applicants from countries suffering war or other turmoil had experienced difficulties in obtaining this documentation. In these circumstances, applicants were referred to the committee irrespective of how long they had been resident in the UK.

While the council may consider all previous convictions, whether spent or not, the scheme of assessing offending history focussed on the last ten years. Following that principle, it was proposed to allow applications to proceed if the individual could show they had been resident in the UK for the last ten years continuously. If officers had any doubts or concerns regarding the application, they could refer the matter to committee. An equalities impact assessment had been carried out.

*RESOLVED –

1.   That good conduct certificates no longer be required from applicants for a taxi or private hire drivers licence if the person concerned can show they have been resident in the UK continuously for the last ten years and that the policy be amended to reflect this change.

2.   That a questionnaire template be introduced for applicant’s references.