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 22 September 2025 were submitted and approved as a correct record.

Update – Licensing Appeals

The Chair agreed to consider a verbal update on Licensing Appeals under any other urgent items.  The Licensing Manager advised that, under Delegated Powers, since the previous Licensing Committee, Officers had recently revoked four taxi driver licences as follows:-

1.     25 September 2025 – Revocation following arrest of driver in relation to rape.  (Allegation made by former partner).

2.     30 September 2025 – Revocation following arrest of driver in relation to wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.  (Allegation made by partner attending A&E).

3.     30 September 2025 – Revocation following arrest of driver in relation to wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and violence to enter premises.  (Allegation made by partner following incident at home).

4.     3 October 2025 – Revocation following arrest of driver in relation to possession of Class A drugs with intent to supply.

In addition, the Council’s Legal Representative updated that a recent appeal made by a driver in relation to the revocation of their licence due to motoring offences was dismissed by the Magistrates Court as he had failed to comply with any Court directions.  It was understood that the driver intended to appeal to Crown Court.

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.

ORDER OF BUSINESS - SUSPENSION OF COUNCIL PROCEDURE RULE No. 4.13.2

ORDERED that in accordance with the Council’s Constitution Procedure Rules, paragraph 4.30.1(c), the Committee agreed to vary the order of business to consider the agenda items as follows: Agenda items 7, 6 and 8.

The Director of Environment and Community Services submitted an exempt report in connection with the review of Private Hire Vehicle Driver Licence, Ref: 32/25, where circumstances had arisen which required special consideration by the Committee.

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

The Principal Public Protection Officer (Licensing) presented a summary of the report outlining the driver’s licensing history.  The driver was first licensed with Middlesbrough Council in November 2014 and appeared before Members due to the conviction detailed at 1) in the submitted report.

The driver was interviewed by a Licensing Officer on 8 September 2025 when he confirmed that there were no other outstanding matters of which the Council was unaware and provided an explanation in relation to the offence at 1).

The driver had explained that the offence occurred whilst he was using his personal vehicle working as a delivery driver for a food delivery firm and not whilst working as a taxi driver.  He was stopped by the Police and issued with a £200 fixed penalty notice and six penalty point on his DVLA licence.  The driver confirmed that he had paid the fine.

It was highlighted that the driver had failed to report the matter to the Licensing Office, as required by condition on this licence.  During interview the driver was reminded of this requirement and advised that it had been covered as part of his training, to which the driver had responded that his training had taken place a long time ago.

The driver confirmed the content of the report as being an accurate representation of the facts.

In response to a query raised by a Member, the Licensing Manager confirmed that date of the driver’s conviction was 9 July 2022 and not 2025 as stated in the report.  It was also confirmed that the penalty points on the driver’s licence had come off in July 2025 as they remained on the DVLA licence for a period of three years.

In response to a further query by a Member of the Committee, it was confirmed that currently no refresher training was provided to drivers.  Members requested further discussion around this issue at the end of the meeting.

The driver was invited to address the Committee in support of his case.

The driver’s cousin spoke on behalf of the driver, and they responded to questions from Members of the Committee, the Licensing Officers and the Council’s Legal Representative.

It was confirmed that there were no further questions and the driver, his cousin, 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 review. 

Subsequently, all parties returned, and the Chair announced a summary of the Committee’s decision and highlighted that the driver would  ...  view the full minutes text for item 25/44

The Director of Environment and Community Services submitted an exempt report in connection with the review of Combined Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Vehicle Driver Licence, Ref: 31/25, where circumstances had arisen which required special consideration by the Committee.

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

The Principal Public Protection Officer (Licensing) presented a summary of the report outlining that the driver appeared before Members in relation to a conviction recorded against him at 1) in the report.

Council records indicated that the driver had been licensed with the Council since 1998, holding a Combined Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Driver’s Licence. This licence was scheduled to expire on 31 November 2025.

In January 2025, Licensing Officers became aware that the licence holder had not signed up to the DBS Update Service as required by the Council’s Taxi Licensing Policy.  A new DBS certificate was subsequently obtained in April 2025, which revealed a conviction from December 2022 for being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control causing injury.  The offence related to an incident in July 2021.

The driver explained to Licensing Officers that the incident had occurred at business premises shared with another individual.  The dog involved was normally kept on the premises as a guard dog.  On the day of the incident, the victim entered the unit early in the morning when it was still dark.  The driver stated that the dog did not recognise the victim and attacked, resulting in injury.  The police attended and the driver was subsequently charged and appeared at the Magistrates Court where he pleaded guilty.  A suspended custodial sentence, restraining order, compensation order, victim surcharge, and disqualification from keeping animals were imposed.

The driver stated that he had informed a Licensing Officer of the conviction at the time by telephone, although there was no official record of the call.  There was, however, evidence of previous correspondence on 12 October 2024, indicating that the matter was known to the Licensing Department.

On 30 September 2025, the Licensing Manager contacted the driver to clarify the circumstances surrounding the restraining order.  The driver denied any harassment and explained that he no longer operated a business from the premises concerned.

A Member asked the Licensing Manager for clarification on the DBS Update Service, specifically how long the service remains active and how notifications of convictions are received.  The Licensing Manager explained that if a subscription to the Update Service is not renewed by the license holder, a new DBS application is required.  It was further explained that if the subscription lapses, the Licensing Department would not be notified of any new convictions until a new DBS certificate was obtained.

A Member asked the driver how long the victim had known the dog involved in the incident.  The driver responded that it had been approximately  ...  view the full minutes text for item 25/45

The Director of Environment and Community Services submitted an exempt report in connection with the application for Private Hire Vehicle Driver Licence, Ref: 32/25, 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 attended the meeting, accompanied by his wife, verified his name and address and confirmed he had a copy of the report and understood its contents.

The Principal Public Protection Officer (Licensing) presented a summary of the report outlining that the applicant appeared before Members in relation to a conviction recorded against him at 1) in the report.

The report outlined that the applicant had a previous conviction dated 6 July 2022 for disqualification under the totting up procedure, resulting in a six-month driving disqualification.  Licensing Officers were made aware of the conviction through a routine DVLA driver licence enquiry.

The report noted that the applicant had failed to disclose the offence on their application.  The applicant was interviewed by Licensing Officers on 5 August 2025 and confirmed that there were no other outstanding matters of which the Council was unaware.

The applicant explained that they had been abroad for a period of nine months when the disqualification was issued and had not received the relevant correspondence.  They stated that post was delivered to a neighbour’s property, but the houses had an unusual numbering system, and sometimes mail was mixed up.  The neighbour, who also worked away, did not pass on the summons or fine notices.  The applicant stated that bailiffs later attended his parent’s house, who redirected the bailiffs to his wife’s address, and the fine was subsequently paid.

The applicant stated that he had been in shock when their application was refused because he was not aware of the conviction. 

A Member asked the applicant about the totting up procedure and noted that it required twelve penalty points to trigger disqualification.  The applicant stated that additional points may have come from a separate speeding offence when travelling to and from Grimsby.

A Member asked the whether the applicant had attempted to appeal the conviction.  The applicant stated that they had assumed the time to contest the offence had expired, as they were abroad when the summons was issued and the fine remained unpaid.

The applicant was invited to address the Committee in support of his application.

The applicant stated that they were no longer disqualified as the offence occurred three years previously.  He explained that he had previously held a taxi driver licence with the Council for many years and had worked in the trade alongside family members who had also been licensed operators.  He stated that that he previously maintained a good relationship with passengers and was well regarded by regular customers.  It was his intention to work on a semi-retired basis for approximately 30 hours per week and believed his previous experience as a taxi driver was beneficial.

It was confirmed that there were no further questions  ...  view the full minutes text for item 25/46