Agenda item

**DECLARATION OF INTEREST

 

The Chair declared a non-pecuniary interest in the following item as the driver lived in her Ward, however, they were not known to each other and it was confirmed that this would not impact on her consideration or determination of the matter.

 

The Director of Environment and Community Services submitted an exempt report in connection with the review of Private Hire Vehicle Driver Licence, Ref: 21/24, where circumstances had arisen which required special consideration by the Committee.

 

The Chair introduced those present and outlined the procedure to be followed.  The driver, 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 outlining that the driver had been licensed with Middlesbrough Council since January 2017 and appeared before Members as a result of an incident on 7 November 2024 which raised concerns regarding his suitability as a licensed driver.

 

The Committee heard that, on 7 November 2024, Stockton Council’s Trading Standards Team notified Middlesbrough Council’s Licensing department that a driver was seen urinating at the side of a Private Hire vehicle in Stockton High Street.  Checks against the vehicle were made by a Licensing Enforcement Officer which confirmed the vehicle was licensed by Middlesbrough Council. 

 

Subsequently CCTV footage was supplied to Licensing Officers showing, that at approximately 03:52 hours on 7 November, a male urinating in the street and discarding a piece of litter before driving away.

 

On 18 November 2024, Licensing Officers contacted the vehicle operator to request log on details for the driver of the vehicle at the time of the incident.  This was subsequently provided, confirming the driver’s identity.

 

On 22 November 2024, the Licensing Officer interviewed the driver, by telephone, about the matter.  The driver admitted to the incident and explained he had been ‘caught short’ and took medication for a health condition, a symptom of which was requiring the toilet more frequently.  A check of the driver’s most recent medical report confirmed this.

 

The Committee was informed that the driver was issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) by Stockton Council’s Enforcement Team in the sum of £130.  The fine was discounted to £90 if paid within seven days and the driver confirmed that he had paid the £90 fine on 16 November.  A copy of the FPN was attached at Appendix 1 for information.

 

The CCTV footage was shown to Members of the Committee.

 

The driver confirmed that the report was an accurate reflection of the facts and was invited to address the Committee in support of his case.

 

The driver spoke in support of his case and responded to questions from Members of the Committee.

 

It was confirmed that there were no further questions and the driver 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 receive the full decision and reasons within five working days.

 

ORDERED that Private Hire Vehicle Driver Licence, Ref No: 21/24, be retained but the driver be issued with a warning, as follows:-

 

Authority to Act

 

1.     Under Section 61 of the Local Government Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1976 (“the Act”) the Committee may revoke or suspend a private hire / hackney carriage vehicle driver’s licence on the grounds that:

 

-       Since the grant of the licence the Driver has been convicted of an offence involving dishonesty, indecency or violence;

-       Since the grant of the licence the Driver has committed an offence or breached the Act or the Town Police Clauses Act 1847;

-       for any other reasonable cause. 

 

2.     The Committee considered Section 61 of the Act, the Middlesbrough Council Private Hire and Hackney Carriage Policy 2022 (“the Policy”), the report and representations made by the driver.

 

3.     The review of the licence was considered on its own particular facts and on its merits.

 

Decision

 

4.     After carefully considering all the information, the Licensing Committee decided to, on this occasion, permit the driver to keep his licence, but issued him with a warning regarding his future conduct.

 

Reasons

 

5.     Licensing Officers were made aware of an incident by Stockton Council’s Trading Standards Team, whereby CCTV footage had captured an Asian male littering and urinating at the side of a private hire vehicle near the Shambles car park on Stockton High Street.  (Vehicle registration number supplied).

 

6.     Subsequent investigations by Licensing Officers confirmed the identity of the driver of the vehicle, the subject of the immediate review.

 

7.     The driver, when questioned by Licensing Officers, did not deny the incident and explained that he was simply caught short.  The driver further informed Officers that he was Type 2 Diabetic and a symptom of this condition was that he must use the toilet every couple of hours.  The driver stated he was worried he would soil himself should he travel to a toilet, but that he did check to ensure nobody could see him.  The driver was unaware he had been captured on CCTV and was fined by Stockton Council for the offence - the fine was paid in full.

 

8.     The Committee considered whether the driver was a fit and proper person to hold a licence and consideration was given to the Overriding Duty of the Policy and to the driver breaching the Code of Conduct.  The Committee noted the driver’s mitigation, that he considered it an emergency type situation as he required the toilet, but the Committee still considered as a licenced driver there were standards to uphold.

 

9.     The Committee did, however, in this instance, determine that a warning for this behaviour was appropriate to educate the driver that this behaviour would not be tolerated and to ensure the driver complied with the Policy and rules going forward.

 

10.  The driver was reminded of the Code of Conduct and behaviour expected of drivers found at Appendix J of the Policy.  At point 3(f) of the same, it stated that drivers had a responsibility not to urinate in any public place.

 

11.  The decision was final and there was no internal or statutory route of appeal, however, the driver had the option of judicially reviewing the lawfulness of the decision to the High Court if grounds were made out.  If the driver decided to challenge the decision by way of judicial review, he would be advised to seek independent legal advice as to the grounds and time limits that may apply. If the driver did decide to take this course of action, the Council would apply for any costs it incurred in defending its decision.