STIRLING COUNCIL
MINUTES of SPECIAL MEETING of the PLANNING & REGULATION PANEL held in the
WALLACE ROOM, OLD VIEWFORTH, THURSDAY 9 NOVEMBER 2017 at 3.00 pm
Present
Councillor Alasdair MacPherson (in the Chair)
Councillor Maureen BENNISON
Councillor Neil BENNY
Councillor Douglas DODDS
Councillor Graham LAMBIE
Councillor Jeremy McDONALD
In Attendance
Shona Campbell, Licensing Paralegal (Localities & Infrastructure)
Lindsay Fyfe, Licensing Standards Officer (Localities & Infrastructure)
Alison Smith, Licensing Paralegal
Iain Strachan, Chief Officer – Governance (Clerk)
Mary Love, Committee Officer (Minute)
Also in Attendance
PS Claire MacKenzie, Police Scotland
PC Gordon Hutchinson, Police Scotland
PL57 APOLOGIES AND SUBSTITUTIONS
Apologies were received on behalf of Councillor Alistair Berrill, Councillor Chris Kane and Councillor Evelyn Tweed.
PL58 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
There were no declarations of interest.
The Panel resolved under Section 50A (4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973
that the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the
grounds they involved the disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraphs
6 and 13, of Part 1 of Schedule 7A of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973.
PL59 TAXI DRIVER’S LICENCE 1600
The Chief Officer – Governance explained the process on how the meeting would be conducted. The licence holder, accompanied by his representative, along with the representatives from Police Scotland and the Panel would review the CCTV footage supplied by Police Scotland. Both Police Scotland and licence holder would be given an opportunity to address the Panel in relation to the footage supplied. All parties confirmed they understood the process, and had no questions about it.
On 24 August 2017 Police Scotland lodged a complaint in terms of Paragraph 12(1) Schedule 1 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 in relation to the licence holder and his suitability as a fit and proper person to hold a taxi driver’s licence.
Subsequent to the said complaint being made, there was an immediate suspension of the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence, reference 1600, following the Chief Governance Officer reviewing CCTV footage made available by Police Scotland.
The licence holder attended a meeting of the Planning & Regulation Panel on 22 September 2017, at which the complaint was then considered by the Panel. The Panel took the decision to suspend his taxi driver’s licence, subject to a further report being brought to the Panel following the pleading diet which was due to take place on 20 October 2017 in connection with this incident.
The report had been brought forward in implementation of the Panel decision of 22 September 2017.
The Panel heard from the representatives of Police Scotland, who provided an update on matters since the previous Planning & Regulation Panel Meeting on 22 September 2017 and requested that the Panel agree to the suspension of the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence, as previously agreed at the Planning & Regulation Panel Meeting on 22 September 2017.
The licence holder was in attendance with a representative in support of his role as a taxi driver. The CCTV footage of the said incident was then shown.
The Panel put a number of questions to Police Scotland, the licence holder and his representative.
In response to a question from the Clerk, the licence holder and his representative confirmed that he had received a fair hearing.
Motion
“That the Panel agrees:-
-
to terminate the suspension and reinstate the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence, this being with immediate effect, with an added condition that the licence holder demonstrated good behaviour in his holding his taxi driver’s licence. The Panel took this decision because, even though Police Scotland had raised concerns following an incident the licence holder had been involved in on 5 July 2017, which
were a material consideration for the Panel, the Panel felt that there were mitigating circumstances in respect of this incident which, on balance, meant that the licence holder had not demonstrated to be a serious threat to public safety in his role as a taxi driver, and as a consequence was a fit and proper person to hold a taxi driver’s
licence; and -
a report to be brought to a future meeting of the Planning & Regulation Panel so the Panel could re-assess the circumstances, prior to the expiry of the licence holder’s licence on 31 May 2018.
Proposed by Councillor Maureen Bennison, seconded by Councillor Graham Lambie and supported by Councillor Alasdair MacPherson.
Amendment
“That the Panel agrees:-
to suspend of the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence until the conclusion of criminal proceedings, in order to protect the public.”
Proposed by Councillor Neil Benny, seconded by Councillor Douglas Dodds.
On the roll being called, the Members present voted as follows:-
For the Amendment (2) Councillor Neil Benny
Councillor Douglas Dodds
Against the Amendment (4) Councillor Maureen Bennison
Councillor Graham Lambie
Councillor Alasdair MacPherson
Councillor Jeremy McDonald
The Amendment fell by 4 votes to 2.
For the Motion (4) Councillor Maureen Bennison
Councillor Graham Lambie
Councillor Alasdair MacPherson
Councillor Jeremy McDonald
Against the Motion (2) Councillor Neil Benny
Councillor Douglas Dodds
Decision
The Motion was carried by 4 votes to 2 and accordingly the Panel agreed:-
-
to terminate the suspension and reinstate the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence, this being with immediate effect, with an added condition that the licence holder demonstrated good behaviour in his holding his taxi driver’s licence. The Panel took this decision because, even though Police Scotland had raised concerns following an incident the licence holder had been involved in on 5 July 2017, which
were a material consideration for the Panel, the Panel felt that there were mitigating circumstances in respect of this incident which, on balance, meant that the licence holder had not demonstrated to be a serious threat to public safety in his role as a taxi driver, and as a consequence was a fit and proper person to hold a taxi driver’s
licence; and -
a report to be brought to a future meeting of the Planning & Regulation Panel so the Panel could re-assess the circumstances, prior to the expiry of the licence holder’s licence on 31 May 2018.
(Reference: Report by Senior Manager – Infrastructure (Localities & Infrastructure) dated 1 November 2017, submitted).
PL60 TAXI DRIVER’S LICENCE 1095
The Chief Officer – Governance explained the process on how the meeting would be conducted. The licence holder, accompanied by his representative, along with the representatives from Police Scotland and the Panel would review the CCTV footage supplied by Police Scotland. Both Police Scotland and licence holder would be given an opportunity to address the Panel in relation to the footage supplied. All parties confirmed they understood the process, and had no questions it.
On 24 August 2017 Police Scotland lodged a complaint in terms of Paragraph 12(1) Schedule 1 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 in relation to the licence holder and his suitability as a fit and proper person to hold a taxi driver’s licence.
Subsequent to the said complaint being made, there was an immediate suspension of the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence, reference 1095, following the Chief Governance Officer reviewing CCTV footage made available by Police Scotland.
The licence holder attended a meeting of the Planning & Regulation Panel on 22 September 2017, at which the complaint was then considered by the Panel. The Panel took the decision to suspend his taxi driver’s licence, subject to a further report being brought to the Panel, following the pleading diet which was due to take place on 20 October 2017 in connection with this incident.
The report was brought forward in implementation of the Panel decision of 22
September 2017. The licence holder had lodged an application to renew his taxi driver’s licence and this application was currently on hold pending the outcome of the Panel meeting today, this also being part of the Panel’s decision on 22 September 2017.
The licence holder had instructed a solicitor to appeal the panel’s decision. This was heard at the Sheriff Court on 1 November 2017 and the sheriff took the decision to uphold the Panel’s decision of 22 September 2017 and had continued the case to 21 November 2017, at which point it would be clearer whether the appeal required to progress or not, dependent on the decision taken by the Panel today.
The Panel heard from the representatives of Police Scotland, who provided an update on matters since the previous Planning & Regulation Panel Meeting on 22 September 2017 and requested that the Panel agreed to continue with the suspension of the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence, as agreed at the Planning & Regulation Panel Meeting on 22 September 2017.
The licence holder was in attendance with a representative in support of his role as a taxi driver.
The licence holder was offered the opportunity to view the CCTV footage again, which he declined. The Panel did not consider it needed to view the footage again, having just done so.
The Panel put a number of questions to Police Scotland, the licence holder and his representative.
In response to a question from the Clerk, the licence holder and his representative confirmed that the licence holder had received a fair hearing.
Motion
“That the Panel agrees:-
-
to suspend the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence under Paragraph 11, Schedule 1 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, this being with immediate effect. The Panel took this decision because Police Scotland had raised concerns following an incident the licence holder had been involved in on 5 July 2017, which were a material consideration for the Panel. In particular, the Panel felt that the incident demonstrated that the licence holder might be a serious threat to public safety and be unable to conduct himself in a suitable manner in situations a taxi
driver might find themselves in, and as a consequence was not a fit and proper person to hold a taxi driver’s licence; and -
that the licence holder’s current application for a renewal of a taxi driver’s licence be placed on hold until the final determination in respect of the court proceedings which relate to the said incident on 5 July 2017.
Proposed by Councillor Douglas Dodds, seconded by Councillor Jeremy McDonald.
Amendment
“That the Panel agrees:-
to terminate the suspension and reinstate the taxi driver’s licence, with an added condition that the licence holder demonstrates good behaviour in his holding his taxi driver’s licence, with a report to be brought to a future meeting of the Planning & Regulation Panel so the Panel could re-assess the circumstances, prior to the expiry of the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence on 27 March 2018.”
Proposed by Councillor Graham Lambie, seconded by Councillor Alasdair
MacPherson.
On the roll being called, the Members present voted as follows:-
For the Amendment (2) Councillor Graham Lambie
Councillor Alasdair MacPherson
Against the Amendment (4) Councillor Maureen Bennison
Councillor Neil Benny
Councillor Douglas Dodds
Councillor Jeremy McDonald
The Amendment fell by 4 votes to 2.
For the Motion (4) Councillor Maureen Bennison
Councillor Neil Benny
Councillor Douglas Dodds
Councillor Jeremy McDonald
Against the Motion (2) Councillor Graham Lambie
Councillor Alasdair MacPherson
Decision
The Motion was carried by 4 votes to 2 and accordingly the Panel agreed:-
-
to suspend the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence under Paragraph 11, Schedule 1 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, this being with immediate effect. The Panel took this decision because Police Scotland had raised concerns following an incident the licence holder had been involved in on 5 July 2017, which were a material consideration for the Panel. In particular, the Panel felt that the incident demonstrated that the licence holder might be a serious threat to public safety and be unable to conduct himself in a suitable manner in situations a taxi
driver might find themselves in, and as a consequence was not a fit and proper person to hold a taxi driver’s licence; and -
that the licence holder’s current application for a renewal of a taxi driver’s licence be placed on hold until the final determination in respect of the court proceedings which relate to the said incident on 5 July 2017.
(Reference: Report by Senior Manager – Infrastructure (Localities & Infrastructure) dated 1 November 2017, submitted).
PL61 TAXI DRIVER’S LICENCE 1855
The Chief Officer – Governance explained the process on how the meeting would be conducted. The licence holder, accompanied by his representative, along with the representatives from Police Scotland and the Panel would review the CCTV footage supplied by Police Scotland. Both Police Scotland and licence holder would be given an opportunity to address the Panel in relation to the footage supplied. All parties confirmed they understood the process, and had no questions it.
On 24 August 2017 Police Scotland lodged a complaint in terms of Paragraph 12(1) Schedule 1 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 in relation to the licence holder and his suitability as a fit and proper person to hold a taxi driver’s licence.
Subsequent to the said complaint being made, there was an immediate suspension of the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence, reference 1855, following the Chief Governance Officer reviewing CCTV footage made available by Police Scotland.
The licence holder attended a meeting of the Planning & Regulation Panel on 22 September 2017, at which this complaint was then considered by the Panel. The Panel took the decision to terminate the suspension and reinstate the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence with immediate effect, subject to a further report being brought to the Panel following the pleading diet which was due to take place on 20 October 2017 in connection with this incident.
The report was brought forward in implementation of the Panel decision of 22
September 2017.
The Panel heard from the representatives of Police Scotland, who provided an update on matters since the previous Planning & Regulation Panel Meeting on 22 September 2017 and informed the Panel that there was no representation to make in terms of the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence, given his licence was reinstated on 22 September 2017.
The licence holder was in attendance with a representative in support of his role as a taxi driver.
It was noted that there was an omission with regard to the officer recommendations within the report and the Panel were advised of a third recommendation available for consideration, which was to allow the licence holder to continue to drive as a taxi driver, given his licence was reinstated on 22 September 2017.
The licence holder was offered the opportunity to view the CCTV footage again, which he accepted.
The Panel put a number of questions to Police Scotland, the licence holder and his representative.
In response to a question from the Clerk, the licence holder and his representative confirmed that he had received a fair hearing.
Councillor Neil Benny, seconded by Councillor Maureen Bennison moved that the licence holder could continue to hold his taxi driver’s licence and operate as a taxi driver.
In terms of Standing Order No 66, Councillor Douglas Dodds moved to suspend the licence holder’s taxi driver’s licence for the unexpired portion of its duration, with immediate effect until the final determination in respect of the court proceedings, which relate to the said incident on 5 July 2017 but having failed to find a seconder, requested that his dissent be recorded.
Decision
The Panel agreed that the licence holder could continue to hold his taxi driver’s licence and operate as a taxi driver. The Panel took this decision because, even though Police Scotland had raised concerns following an incident the licence holder had been involved in on 5 July 2017, which were a material consideration for the Panel, the Panel felt that there were mitigating circumstances in respect of this incident which, on balance, meant that the licence holder has not demonstrated to be a serious threat to public safety in his role as a taxi driver, and as a consequence was a fit and proper
person to hold a taxi driver’s licence.
(Reference: Report by Senior Manager – Infrastructure (Localities & Infrastructure) dated 27 October 2017, submitted).
The Chair declared the Meeting closed at 4.35 pm