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Agenda item
Future Review of the Council's Licensing Requirements for Hackney Carriage (Taxi) and Private Hire Vehicles, Drivers and Operators.
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 ensuing
debate, queries were received in respect of DBS checks and the costs to
drivers. Officers confirmed that current
checks are £40 which covers a driver for 3 years. It was explained that the new requirement
will require drivers to sign up to the DBS Update Service which will be in the
region of £11 per year, which will allow for more stringent checks on a regular
basis and better safeguarding of the public, as it means that drivers where
convictions have occurred can be brought to Sub Committee if needed in a more
timely manner. It was confirmed should
the proposal subsequently be agreed by Committee, signing up to the DBS Update
Service service will be a requirement of the Council’s Licensing Policy, for
which checks will carried out at 6-month intervals by the Licensing Department,
and failure to do so will lead to refusal, suspension or revocation of a
licence. It was also confirmed that the
new DBS requirements will lead to a rolling service, whereby a driver signs up
for the initial DBS check at £40, registers for the additional service in the
region of £11, and then it will be approximately £11 year on year (subject to
price increases), instead of paying £40 every three years.
A Member asked how long the proposed
consultation with the trade and stakeholders would last for. Officers explained that it is hoped to
commence the consultation over the summer period with the aim of bringing an
update back to Committee in the Autumn.
The period of consultation has not yet been set but this will be a
sufficient amount of time to allow the taxi trade to provide the Licensing
Authority with their comments.
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:-
(i) the contents of the
report, and the need for the Council to review its existing requirements,
policies and conditions of licence in order to comply with Statutory Standards
and Welsh Government Guidance, be noted.
(ii) a consultation process
with the licensed trade on the proposed changes be approved, prior to
submission of detailed reports to this Committee for their consideration.
The
meeting closed at 10.40 a.m.
Supporting documents: