Agenda and minutes

There were no Declarations of Interest made by Members at this point in the meeting.

The minutes of the Licensing Committee held on 23 June 2025 were submitted and approved as a correct record.

There were no updates to be provided.

NOTED

There were no urgent items.

NOTED

To consider passing a Resolution Pursuant to Section 100A (4) Part 1 of the Local Government Act 1972 excluding the press and public from the meeting during consideration of the following items on the grounds that if present there would be disclosure to them of exempt information falling within paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 7 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act and the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

ORDERED that the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following items on the grounds that, if present, there would be disclosure to them of exempt information as defined in Paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 7 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 and that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighed the public interest in disclosing the information.

The Director of Environment and Community Services submitted an exempt report in connection with an application for the renewal of a Private Hire Vehicle Driver Licence, Ref: 25/25, where circumstances had arisen which required special consideration by the Committee.

The Chair introduced those present and outlined the procedure to be followed.  The applicant, who was in attendance at the meeting accompanied by his legal representative, verified his name and address and confirmed he had received a copy of the report and understood its contents. 

The Principal Licensing Officer presented a summary of the report.  It was acknowledged that the matter had been scheduled for consideration at the Licensing Committee on 23 June 2025, however, Members agreed to defer consideration to today’s meeting due to the unavailability of the applicant’s legal representative.

The Committee was advised that the applicant was first licensed by Middlesbrough Council on 1 June 2023.  The applicant’s licence was due to expire on 31 May 2025 and he submitted an application to renew the licence on 28 May 2025.

The applicant appeared before Members due to the offence listed at 1) in the report.  It was noted that the applicant had notified the Licensing Office, by email, on 27 May 2025, of the offence, together with his change of address.

As previously stated, the applicant had submitted an application to renew his licence on 28 May, the day after notifying the Licensing Office of the offence at 1), however, he failed to declare this on his application form.

On 30 May 2025, during a routine check on the applicant’s DVLA licence status, it showed the offence of using a vehicle uninsured against third party risks dated 26 March 2025, for which the applicant received six penalty points and £300 fine.  Officers also discovered that the applicant’s DVLA licence was valid from 28 March 2025.

The applicant was interviewed by Licensing Officers on 2 June 2025 when he provided an explanation in relation to the offence at 1).  When questioned regarding the issue date of his DVLA licence, the applicant explained that he had notified the DVLA regarding his change of address and was accordingly issued with a new licence.

The circumstances of the offence were set out in the report which included the applicant obtaining temporary insurance cover for the vehicle in question, at the roadside, when he had been stopped by the Police.  A copy of the temporary insurance documentation was appended to the report.  In addition, a copy of the ‘Conditional Offer of a Fixed Penalty’ issued by Cleveland Police in relation to the offence was attached at Appendix 1.

The Principal Licensing Officer highlighted that one of the conditions of a Private Hire driver’s licence was to notify the Council, in writing, within 48 hours of any cautions or convictions for any motoring or criminal offence.  Whilst the applicant had notified the Licensing Office on 27 May 2025 of the offence at 1), the offence occurred on 26 March 2025.

A further condition on  ...  view the full minutes text for item 25/24

The Director of Environment and Community Services submitted an exempt report in connection with an application for a Private Hire Vehicle Driver Licence, Ref: 26/25, where circumstances had arisen which required special consideration by the Committee.

The Chair introduced those present and outlined the procedure to be followed.  The applicant, who was in attendance at the meeting, verified his name and address and confirmed he had received a copy of the report and understood its contents. 

The Principal Licensing Officer presented a summary of the report stating that the applicant appeared before Members due to the convictions detailed at 1) to 3) in the submitted report and confirmed that the applicant had disclosed his convictions on his application form.

The applicant was interviewed by a Licensing Officer on 7 July 2025 when he provided explanations in relation to the offences at 1) to 3) and confirmed that there were no outstanding matters of which the Council was unaware.

The applicant confirmed the content of the report as being an accurate representation of the facts and was invited to address the Committee in support of his application.

The applicant addressed the Committee in support of his application. 

It was confirmed that there were no questions and the applicant, and Officers of the Council, other than representatives of the Council’s Legal and Democratic Services teams, withdrew from the meeting whilst the Committee determined the application. 

Subsequently, all parties returned, and the Chair announced a summary of the Committee’s decision and highlighted that the applicant would receive the full decision and reasons within five working days.

ORDERED that the application for a Private Hire Vehicle Driver Licence, Ref No: 26/25, be refused, as follows:-

Authority to Act

1.     Under Section 51 of the Local Government Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1976 (“the Act”) the Committee may decide to grant a Private Hire Vehicle driver’s licence only if it was satisfied the driver was a fit and proper person to be granted such a licence.

2.     The Committee considered Section 51 of the Act, the Middlesbrough Council Private Hire and Hackney Carriage Policy 2022 (“the Policy”), the report and representations made by the applicant.

3.     The application was considered on its own particular facts and on its merits.

Decision

4.     After carefully considering all the information, the Licensing Committee decided to refuse to grant the application for a Private Hire Vehicle driver’s licence on the grounds that the Committee was not satisfied the applicant was a fit and proper person to be granted the licence.  The reasons for the decision were as follows:-

Reasons

5.     The applicant was convicted on 19 December 2017 of Battery under S39 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988.  The applicant was originally sentenced to a six month conditional discharge, £85.00 costs and £20.00 victim surcharge.

6.     The applicant was convicted on 6 May 2018 of driving a motor vehicle with excess alcohol on 5 February 2018 under S5(1)(a) Road Traffic Act 1988.  The applicant’s conditional discharge was subsequently varied and the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 25/25