Agenda item

To consider the responses received during the public consultation and approve a new Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy for the District Council.

With the assistance of a report by the Licensing Officer (a copy of which was appended in the Minute Book), the Committee considered the contents of a draft Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy for the Council. The Policy was first introduced in 2018 and as part of its implementation, it had been agreed to review the policy every three years.

Members were informed that the Policy had been revised to address new and statutory duties placed upon the Council and the review had also provided an opportunity to revisit a number of existing areas of the policy which had been adopted in 2021. The review had also permitted a examination of the introduction of new legislation, statutory guidance and the impact of changing economic conditions.

The Committee were advised that the changes proposed were in keeping with regulatory codes of conduct, statutory guidance and the Council’s Corporate Plan and that changes would create a clearer, concise, and more consistent policy which would benefit the public, the licensed trade, and the licensing team. All costs associated with the implementation of the policy would be financed from the receipt of licence fees.

A public consultation had taken place between 30th January and 25th March 2024 and 31 responses had received. Details of which were provided to Members of the Committee.

Members proceed to then review and discuss in detail the responses received to those conditions where changes were proposed, together with the Licensing team’s responses, and the final proposal or options for inclusion within the revised policy. These were grouped by Driver Conditions (Appendix 4), Vehicle Conditions (Appendix 5) and Private Hire Operator Conditions (Appendix 6).

Driver Conditions (Appendix 4)

In discussing the proposed introduction of a further appropriate formal driving qualification to improve driver competency (Section 4 – 39.4) the Committee were of the view that the proposed condition needed to be more specific to state which qualification would be required. Officers agreed that this would be made clear both in the final documentation and on the District Council’s website. The Committee then indicated their approval for the inclusion of this condition.

Vehicle Conditions (Appendix 5)

The Committee discussed the responses which had been received regarding the need to display signage on Private Hire vehicles when they were not been used for licensed purposes. Having noted that the request had been made for privacy and safety reasons, the Committee indicated their support to enable signage to be removed when licensed drivers were using their vehicles for private use. With regards to the proposal to remove the additional door signage for Hackney Carriages, the Committee confirmed that they were content with this proposal.

The Committee then discussed the proposals as outlined in Section 26.5 – 26.8 of the draft Policy such that once any vehicle currently licensed under retained grandfather rights ceased to be licensed, they could no longer transfer their plate to any other vehicle. Having reviewed the responses received on this matter and the comments of the Licensing team, Members commented on the lack of available wheelchair accessible vehicles within the district and noted that the Equalities Act had been in place since 2010. Whilst recognising the commercial constraints placed on vehicle operators, the Committee indicated their support for this change.

The Committee went on to discuss proposed emission standard requirements for new and existing Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Vehicle licences as set out in Section 16.1 and 16.2 of the draft policy. Members were informed that this had attracted a significant response from the trade. Although a number of responses had been in support as it would remove the 5-year age restriction on the age of the vehicle, a number of negative responses had been received relating to the financial burden this may place on the trade. With this in mind and to minimise the impact on vehicle licence holders, the Committee indicated their support for the gradual approach set out in Proposals 1 and 2 within Appendix 5 to the report. This would mean that from 1 January 2025, any existing licensed Hackney Carriage or Private Hire Vehicle must meet Euro 5 emission standards, with existing licensed Wheelchair Accessible Hackney Carriage or Private Hire Vehicles having until June 2025. Having noted that some neighbouring authorities had already shifted to an Ultra Low Emission Vehicles or electric hybrid requirement, Members were of the opinion that it was not the right time to adopt this approach in Huntingdonshire. Officers agreed that there was insufficient infrastructure within the district at the current time and the proposed approach represented a graduated step towards cleaner emissions.

With regards to the proposal to introduce a requirement that Certificate of Compliance checks be undertaken on a six-monthly basis for those vehicles which are 8 years or older, the Committee were advised that this had generated responses from the public consultation. The responses had referred to the additional costs being placed upon the trade and had suggested that vehicles were being targeted due to their age. However, the Committee were advised that an increasing number of vehicles were failing their inspections due to safety concerns. Having noted the results of a benchmarking exercise with other District Council’s within the Cambridgeshire County area and the view of officers that 8 years was an appropriate age to undertake these checks, Members of the Committee indicated their support for this change to the policy given their duty to protect public safety.

Having noted that the final wording of the Section 24.9 would be clarified to confirm that card payments must be offered as an alternative to cash payments, the Committee confirmed their support for this change so that passengers were offered a choice of payment methods. In response to a comment regarding a member’s personal experience with a driver who had asked for a bank transfer in lieu of payment for a fare, the Licensing Manager suggested that the wording could be amended to specify a card payment within the vehicle and not as a bank transfer. It was also reiterated that safety concerns were one of the main reasons that the proposal had been incorporated into the revised policy.

In drawing the discussion to a close, the Committee confirmed that they were in support of the proposed changes outlined in Appendix 5 – Vehicle Conditions.

Private Hire Operator Conditions (Appendix 6)

The Committee then went on to review the proposed changes to Private Hire Operator Conditions. In doing so, Members discussed appropriate training for drivers and to assist wheelchair users in wheelchair accessible vehicles. (Sections 1.1, 1.2, 5.3, 5.4 and 26.12). The Committee discussed specifically training for those driving wheelchair accessible vehicles and acknowledged that this was important to improve the confidence of the wheelchair using community to utilise taxi services. Members agreed they would not wish to place a requirement upon all licence holders and new applicants to undergo additional wheelchair accessibility training as this would place a significant burden on the trade. However, the Committee agreed to support an amendment to the wording of Section 26.12, such that it was the Operator’s responsibility to ensure that their drivers had been appropriately trained in the use of wheelchair accessible vehicles and relevant belts and other restraints.

In reviewing the remainder of the proposed changes, the Committee indicated that they had no objections to changing the wording of Condition 1.3 in accordance with the recommendations of the Licensing Officer, to ensure that Operators complied with their obligations under the Immigration Act and to reflect the comments which had been made during the consultation regarding the difference between directly employed and self-employed drivers.

In discussing whether an Operators name and contact information must be displayed on a Private Hire vehicle, the Committee consider the feedback which had been received in support and against the proposals and noted that there was good rationale on both sides. Guidance from the Department for Transport on the matter was also noted to be contradictory. However, the Committee concluded that it was necessary and most appropriate for the district, and therefore the condition should be included for all Private Hire vehicles.

The Committee then reviewed the proposed changes to conditions relating to Operator premises which were open to the public during the nighttime economy hours (Sections 4.6 and 4.7). In doing so, the Committee agreed that it was appropriate given an Operator’s responsibilities to their own employees and that as the proposal did not explicitly require security, a new condition should be included to require Private Hire Operators to conduct an ongoing risk assessment to ensure that where it was considered necessary, sufficient SIA security were present at the premises. That way should any disturbances occur, there would be greater regulatory control and any additional cost would only be incurred if it were considered necessary. The Committee were also advised that the times within these Section 4.7 relating to the provision of hot food and drink should be amended to 23.00hrs to 05:00 hrs.

The Committee discussed the inclusion of proposal not to permit overseas call centres to be used by private hire operators due to the requirement of all dispatch staff requiring a basic DBS certificate. (Section 6.7). Having noted the requirements of Department of Transport guidance on the matter and the views of the Licensing Team on a proposal put forward as part of the public consultation that the Council should permit certificates of good conduct as an alternative, the Committee outlined their support for the requirement for DBS checks for despatch staff and the inclusion of this condition.  Detail was also provided to Committee members on the detail of checks undertaken by the Disclosure and Barring service and Members noted that regulation of this by the Licensing Authority would evolve as time progressed.

Finally, the Committee outlined their support for a proposal that Operators must maintain a list of current despatchers and have sight of a basic DBS disclosure. Members were advised that due to comments that had been received as part of the public consultation exercise, the list of employees that required a check would be made clearer within the final documentation.

The Committee confirmed that they were in support of the proposed changes outlined in Appendix 6 – Private Hire Operator Conditions.

Whereupon and having concluded the discussion on this item, it was.

RESOLVED

that the Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy (as set out in Appendix 1) be approved to take effect from 3rd June 2024.