Agenda item

The Director of Environment and Community Services submitted an exempt report in connection with an application for a Private Hire Vehicle Driver Licence, Ref: 15/24, 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 that he had received a copy of the report and understood its contents. 

 

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

 

Councillor Kabuye advised that he recognised the applicant by sight, from a community event, but did not know him in a personal capacity.  The applicant confirmed that this was the case and had no objection to Councillor Kabuye remaining and taking part in the discussion and decision-making process.

 

The Licensing Manager presented a summary of the report outlining that the applicant appeared before the Committee as a result of his previous criminal convictions recorded on his DBS certificate, detailed at 1) to 4) in the report.

 

The applicant was interviewed by Licensing Enforcement Officers on 24 July 2024 when he confirmed that there were no other outstanding matters of which the Council was unaware and provided explanations for the offences at 1) to 4).

 

In brief, the offences had taken place between 1996 and 2000 when the applicant was young and he stated he deeply regretted his actions but had turned his life around.  The applicant is now an ordained minister and volunteers in the community giving motivational speeches to groups and individuals to try and help them make the right life choices.  The applicant confirmed that he had not committed any further offences during the past 22 years.

 

The applicant had provided six character references in support of his application and these were attached at Appendix 1.

 

The applicant also provided a personal statement in support of his application and this was attached at Appendix 2.

 

The applicant confirmed that the report was an accurate representation of the facts and was invited to address the Committee. 

 

The applicant spoke in support of his application and responded to questions from Members of the Committee.

 

It was confirmed that there were no further questions and 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: 15/24, be granted, 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 grant the application for a Private Hire Vehicle driver’s licence on the grounds that it was satisfied the applicant was a fit and proper person to be granted such a licence.

 

Reasons

 

5.    The applicant was convicted of four offences as follows:-

 

a.      Assault Occasioning Actual Bodily Harm – 16 April 1996

b.      Breach of Community Service Order – 15 July 1997

c.      Grievous Bodily Harm with Intent – 17 September 1998

d.      Robbery – 18 December 2000

 

6.    The Policy on Convictions were set out at Appendix G, Policy on the Relevance of Convictions, Cautions, Reprimands, Warnings, Complaints and Character.

 

7.    The Policy stated that a licence would normally be refused where the applicant had a conviction for an offence of violence against the person, or connected with any offence of violence, until a period of at least ten years free of such conviction had elapsed since the completion of any sentence imposed.

 

8.    The Policy further stated that if an applicant was convicted of more than one offence of violence a licence would not be granted.  Therefore, the decision to grant the licence was a departure from the Policy.

 

9.    The Committee considered the report and heard from the applicant during the meeting that, since 2000 he had never committed another offence.  The applicant stated during the meeting how he had completely turned his life around since his release from prison in 2002. 

 

10.  The applicant stated that, following his release from prison, he had spent his life working in the community and with schools and was also now an ordained minister and an influential figure within his local congregation.  The applicant stated he was now married with five children and was a completely different person.

 

11.  The Committee considered there were good reasons to depart from the Policy in this case.

 

12.  Firstly, the Committee believed that the applicant had changed his life in the 22 years since his release from prison, and that the time elapsed since 2002 was significant.

 

13.  The Committee considered all the work the applicant had engaged in during the period since his release and thought that the community impact the applicant had made showed that he was a reformed individual.  This was further reinforced in the reading of the character references that were produced in support of the application.

 

14.  The overriding duty and aim of the Council was to protect the public.  The Committee did not see the applicant as a risk to the public, but rather they considered the applicant to be a fit and proper person to hold a licence.  Therefore, the Committee departed from the Policy and granted the licence.