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Agenda and minutes
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Venue: Digital Meeting via Microsoft Teams
Contact: Rebecca Barrett
No. | Item |
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Recording and Voting Arrangements. The Chair reminded those
present that the meeting was being filmed and would be available following the
meeting via the Council’s website – Click Here to View. Members were advised that voting on decisions
would take place via Microsoft Forms. |
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Chair's Announcement. The Chair placed on record
his thanks to Councillor D.W.R. Preece for his valued
service and dedication as Chair of the Licensing Committee over the past five
years. Councillor W. Williams was
also congratulated on his new role as Vice-Chair of the Licensing Committee. |
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Apologies for absence. Minutes: Apologies for absence were received from Councillors J. Bevan and D. Harse. |
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Declarations of Interest. Minutes: There were no declarations of
interest received at the commencement or during the course of the meeting. |
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Green Fleet Taxi Pilot Livery Advertising. PDF 288 KB Additional documents: Minutes: Lee Morgan (Licensing Manager) presented the report, which sought
approval to permit the usage of livery advertising for Welsh Government and
Cardiff Capital Region on electric Nissan Dynamo vehicles as part of a Green
Fleet Pilot scheme. Mr Morgan set out details of the Green Fleet Pilot Scheme, which has
been funded by Welsh Government as part of an initiative across the Cardiff
Capital Region area to encourage the taxi trade to switch to zero-emission vehicles. The pilot is intended to assist Welsh Government in
achieving its target of de-carbonising the taxi fleet entirely in Wales by
2028. It was explained that 5 vehicles will be allocated to Caerphilly Council
for the purpose of the initiative over a 3-year period for licensed Caerphilly
CBC drivers. These vehicles contain livery
on the body work pertaining to Welsh Government (WG) logo and Cardiff Capital
Region (CCR). However, this initiative
has created a conflict with the Council’s Licensing Policy, as under its Vehicle Inspection standards, advertising is not currently permitted on licensed
hackney carriage and private hire vehicles (save for the taxi company’s
details) unless written prior approval is obtained. The report therefore sought approval to
permit the livery displayed on the vehicles for the purposes of the duration of the ‘try before you buy’ initiative. Members were referred to Appendix 1 of the report
which detailed an example of the trial vehicle.
Mr Morgan also shared a further photograph with the Committee showing
the size of the WG/CCR logos which are located above the rear bumper of the
vehicle. It was noted that Licensing are
already engaging with the taxi trade regarding the use of the scheme and are
gathering input in regards to the siting of the trial vehicles. During the course of the ensuing debate,
Officers responded to queries from Members regarding the current procedure for
drivers seeking approval to advertise on their vehicle. Officers also confirmed that if approved, the
decision to allow the WG/CCR livery would not set a general precedent over the
current advertising controls in place by Licensing. Following consideration of the report, it was moved and seconded that
the following recommendation be approved.
By way of Microsoft Forms and verbal confirmation (and in noting there
were 12 for, 0 against and 0 abstentions) this was unanimously agreed. RESOLVED that the usage of livery for Welsh Government and Cardiff
Capital Region on electric Nissan Dynamo vehicles, as part of a Green Fleet
Pilot scheme, be permitted. |
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Minutes: Lee Morgan (Licensing Manager) presented the report, which informed
Members of the requirements of the Department for Transport (DfT) Statutory
Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Standards and Welsh Government’s Harmonisation Guidance on Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Licensing in
Wales. Members were advised of prospective licensing changes across the UK and
more locally across Wales as a result of the Department of Transport (DfT) and
Welsh Government agreeing a need for common core minimum standards for the taxi
and private hire vehicle sector, in order to improve public safety and
standardisation. Therefore the Licensing
Authority is required to review its current requirements in line with statutory
Standards and Welsh Government’s recommended harmonisation guidance. Members were referred to the Department for Transport best practice
guide and Welsh Government’s Harmonisation guidance that was appended to the
report. It was explained that adopting
the recommendations will lead to increased public safety, consistency of
standards across Wales, harmonised enforcement, increased accessibility of
vehicles and better standards of customer service. Some of the matters referred to in the harmonisation document will have
implications for the taxi trade in the Caerphilly county borough. One of the significant changes that are proposed
relate to a requirement for 6 monthly Disclosure and Barring (DBS) checks for drivers,
primarily via the DBS Update Service. Another
change relates to increased criminality checks for Private Hire Operators and
their staff. The Council’s requirements
for Group 2 Medicals will also require minor amendment to enable certification
from the applicants’ own GP or other Doctors with access to their
medical records. Members were referred to Section 5.6.3 of the report which set out a
summary of the main changes for consideration.
It is proposed that consultation will take place with the trade and
stakeholders on the various changes recommended in the guidance document prior
to submission of further detailed reports to the Committee for Members’
consideration. Both the DFT and Welsh
Government Harmonised Standards have already been circulated to drivers, vehicle proprietors and operators where the e-mail addresses
are held for their information. The documents have
also been forwarded to representatives of the Caerphilly County Borough Taxi Driver Association (CCBTDA) The report also set out the requirement for the Authority to review its
compliance with the Statutory Standards and Harmonisation Guidance and
implement any required changes or publish reasons why it has decided not to do
so. Licensing Officers will begin the
review process in consultation with the licensed trade and relevant
stakeholders, starting with the changes to Disclosure and Barring requirements
and the minor modifications to the Group 2 Medical requirements. The Committee were therefore asked to note the content of the report and
the need to review existing requirements, policies and conditions of licence in
order to comply with Statutory Standards and Welsh Government Guidance, and to
approve a consultation process with the licensed trade on the proposed changes
prior to submission of detailed reports to the Committee for their
consideration. During the course of the ... view the full minutes text for item 4. |