Members will be asked to make any declarations of interest in respect of items on this agenda.

Councillor Churchill declared a personal and prejudicial interest in minute 148, he knew Mr England.

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 22 March 2012.

Agreed that the minutes of the meeting held on 23 March 2012 are confirmed as a correct record.

To receive reports on business which, in the opinion of the Chair, should be brought forward for urgent consideration.

With the permission of the Chair, the licensing officer reported that the Chair had approved the delegated authority report to grant a private hire operator’s licence.

(in accordance with Section 100(B)(4)(b) of the Local Government Act, 1972, the Chair brought forward the above item for urgent consideration because of the need to inform councillors).

The Committee will be provided with the results of the judgement on appeal cases that went to Court.

The committee was advised that there had been no new appeal cases heard since the last meeting.

The Director for Place will submit a report on vehicle proprietors.

The manager for safety, health and licensing reported that –

The committee agreed to note the report.

The Director for Place will submit a report on the request for officer delegated authority to grant medical exemptions.

The manager for safety, health and licensing reported that –

The committee agreed the recommendation to delegate authority to grant all wheelchair and assistance dog exemptions certificates to the Assistant Director for Environmental Services; however, if officers had any concerns regarding any application then the matter will still be referred to committee for a decision; Members further recommended that the Council’s policy is reviewed with a view to setting up an independent medical assessor to assess applicants for exemption certification in the future.

The Director for Place will submit a report on a licensed private hire driver review of licence status.

The committee –

The committee agreed that having taken all of the above into account, it is a proportionate decision to issue Mr England with a warning on this occasion; the warning will lie on Mr England’s file indefinitely and will be brought to the attention of the committee, if he appears before them again in the future.

(Councillor Churchill declared a personal and prejudicial interest in the above matter and left the room).

The Director for Place will submit a report on a licensed hackney carriage driver review of licence status.

The committee –

The Plymouth City Council Act, 1975 enabled the Council to suspend or revoke the licence of a driver of a hackney carriage vehicle for any other reasonable cause.

The first of the licensing objectives contained in the Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing policy required Members to promote the safety and health of drivers and the public.

Members considered that Mr Mindrutescu’s failed vehicle inspections indicated an alarming lack of consideration for the safety of his passengers and the general public and agreed that it is proportionate to suspend Mr Mindrutescu’s hackney carriage driver’s licence for seven days.

To consider passing a resolution under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 to exclude the press and public from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that  they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 3 and 7 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act, as amended by the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Agreed that under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act, 1972, the press and public are excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 3 and 7 of Part I Schedule 12A of the Act, as amended by the Freedom of Information Act, 2000.

(Councillor Churchill was not present for the following items of business).

(Councillor Delbridge was present for the following items of business).

To confirm the confidential minutes of the meeting held on 22 March 2012.

Agreed that the minutes of the meeting held on 23 March 2012 are confirmed as a correct record.

The Director for Place will submit a report on a licensed hackney carriage driver review of licence status.

The committee –

The committee agreed that it is a proportionate decision to revoke PS’s hackney carriage driver’s licence in accordance with Section 19(1)(b) of the Plymouth City Council Act, 1975.

(Please note there is a confidential part to this minute)

The Director for Place will submit a report on a licensed hackney carriage driver review of licence status.

The committee –

The committee agreed that it is a proportionate decision to suspend KLD’s private hire driver and hackney carriage driver’s licences for a period of five days, in accordance with Section 19(1)(b) of the Plymouth City Council Act, 1975.

(Please note there is a confidential part to this minute).

The Director for Place will submit a report on a licensed hackney carriage driver review of licence status.

The committee –

The committee agreed that it is a proportionate decision to issue PEFH with a warning and that the warning will rest on file indefinitely and will be brought to the committee’s attention if PEFH appeared before it in the future; Members however, wanted to be assured that the medication that PEFH had said he was taking, did not affect his medical fitness to driver and therefore requires him to take a medical examination to confirm that he is fit to Group II standard within one month of the committee hearing.

(Please note there is a confidential part to this minute).

The Director for Place will submit a report on a licensed hackney carriage driver application for exemption.

The committee agreed to withdraw this item due to its earlier decision to delegate authority to grant all wheelchair and assistance dog exemptions certificates to the Assistant Director for Environmental Services.