Agenda and minutes

The minutes of the previous meeting held on 13^th November 2024 were agreed and signed as a true record.

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There were no matters of urgency.

To agree any items to be dealt with after the public (including the press) have been excluded. Thereare no itemswhich officersrecommendshould be dealtwithin thisway.

There were no confidential / exempt items.

The Licensing Manager presented the report which provided an update on the activities of the Licensing Service under the Licensing Act 2003, Gambling Act 2005, Taxi legislation and general licensing, including street trading and pavement licences during the last quarter reporting period.  Key points which were highlighted included:

·        During the reporting period, under the Licensing Act 2003, 184 applications had been processed, 14 personal licences had been issued and 12 premises of interest had been visited.

·        One application to vary a premises licence had been received with representations and considered at a hearing on 29 January 2025.  A further application would be considered at a hearing convened for 12 February 2025.

·        There had been a significant increase in the number of Temporary Event Notices for various local shows and events during the reporting period.

·        The Home Office public consultation on ‘Alcohol in licensed pavement areas’ was still in process of analysing data received.

·        The Licensing Act 2003 Statement of Licensing Policy 2021-2026 was due for review and a revised policy would be brought to the Committee later in the year.

·        Work was on-going to draft a Devon wide policy on pavement licensing.

·        Under the Gambling Act 2005, requirements were brought in for smaller operators to conduct test purchasing alongside an amended good practice code to implement Think 25 approaches to age verification.  This was a move from Think 21 to Think 25.

·        During the reporting period there had been a slight drop in Hackney Carriage driver and vehicle licences and a slight rise in private hire drivers and vehicles.

·        Three entries to the National Register of Revocations, Refusals and Suspensions had been made.

·        Three referrals to the Sub Committee had been made during the reporting period.

·        Drivers not completing the mandatory safeguarding training during the agreed timescales would be referred to the Sub Committee.

·        An online survey had been launched regarding the proposed changes to the Hackney Carriage fare setting procedure.

·        Officers continue to attend meetings of the East Devon Taxi Association, when invited.

·        Regarding the VAT treatment of private hire vehicles, at the time of writing the report, legal opinion was that private hire operators outside of London should not be required to charge VAT.

·        26 street trading consents were currently in operation.

·        A full time Licensing Officer had gone on maternity leave and the position had not yet been filled.

·        Refresher training for Committee members had been held in November 2024.

The Licensing Manager would circulate an article regarding VAT treatment of private hire vehicles and the link to the refresher training following the meeting.

Discussion and responses to questions from Members included the following points:

·        The decrease in taxi driver and vehicle licences could be due to a variety of factors.

·        A premises licence does not automatically include a pavement licence.  Where an outside area is not immediately attached to a premises, a separate licence would be required.

·        All new drivers have one year in which to complete the mandatory safeguarding training.  At the time of the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 23.

The Committee received a progress update report following the resolution at the meeting held on 13 November 2024 to authorise a review of the procedure used to calculate hackney carriage fares in the district.

A ten week consultation with the taxi trade had been launched to collect average figures for annual mileage and running costs for inclusion in the draft procedure.

An online survey had been published on 7 January 2025 and link sent to all taxi operators on 8 January.  The survey asked respondents whether they agreed with the estimated average figures or if there were any omissions.

A taxi trade liaison meeting had been held on 15 January 2025 at Blackdown House, to which all members of the East Devon taxi trade had been invited.  9 members of the trade had attended, with 5 sending apologies. 

To date, no responses from the 120 licence holders in the district had been received.  The consultation remained open until 18 March 2025.

Licensing Officers would send further reminders to the taxi trade before the close of the consultation.

It was hoped to bring a draft procedure to the Committee meeting on 2 April 2025, although the timescale was tight.

The Chair asked Members who had any contact with the taxi trade to encourage them to participate as their information was vital to understanding operating costs.

Discussion and responses to questions from Members included the following points:

·        It was difficult to quantify how many responses from the taxi trade would make the fare setting procedure viable.  The estimated draft figures were based on East Devon data rather than Guildford figures.  If there was no input from the taxi trade, the Committee could proceed to agree the methodology.  It was noted that the Guildford consultation had received a poor response and the Judicial Review had concluded that the Guildford taxi trade had chosen not to respond to the opportunities to consult.

·        The East Devon Taxi Association was open to all drivers in the district, although the majority of the 10-15 drivers who usually attend were from Exmouth.

·        The Taxi Trade Liaison meeting had been held at Blackdown House as this was located more centrally in the district and considered to be a neutral location.

·        If the Guildford fare setting procedure was adopted, an annual review would be undertaken with a less detailed survey to capture any variations to the costs involved.

·        It was noted that there would be many variabilities in the costs across the district and a second consultation on the draft procedure, including all estimated figures, would be a vital part of the process towards implementing the final procedure.

·        Paper copies of the current survey would be available and drivers would also be able to access assistance to complete the survey in person if required.

The Chair thanked Officers for the considerable work involved in setting up the consultation for the review of the fare setting procedure.

The Committee agreed to note the contents of the update report.