Agenda and minutes

Members of the Committee and Officers present introduced themselves via roll call during the meeting.

The minutes of the meeting held on 16 January 2023 were submitted and approved, and the Chair was authorised to sign them as a correct record.

Apologies for absence had been received from Councillors Colin Belsey, Andy Collins, Jane Lamb and Anita Mayes.

There were none.

On matters not already included on the agenda and for which prior written notice has been given (total time allowed 15 minutes).

There were none.

The Chairman to notify the Committee of any items of urgent business to be added to the agenda.

There were none.

The Chair to report any requests received to address the Committee from a member of the public or from a Councillor in respect of an item listed below and to invite the Committee to consider taking such items at the commencement of the meeting.

One spokesperson is permitted to speak for 3 minutes and must register by 12noon on Thursday, 22^nd June 2023. Email: committees@lewes-eastbourne.gov.uk

Note: Normally only one speaker is allowed to address the Committee on an item for three minutes and that one person should act as spokesperson for the group. No more than one speaker can be allowed except in exceptional circumstances with prior agreement of the Chair at the registration deadline.

There were none.

Report of Director of Service Delivery 

The Committee considered the report of the Director of Service Delivery to review the Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Guidance and to progress a six-week public consultation as part of an annual review.

Appended to the report at Appendix 1 was the Eastbourne Borough Council Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Guidance.

The Regulatory Services Lead (RSL) presented the report highlighting suggested changes to the Guidance.

Members’ questions included:

• Could the consultation list be extended to include: schools, Mencap, Eastbourne Blind Society, women’s organisations involving refugees etc.?  Officers confirmed they would take the request on board.
• Had there been a form of consultation before this meeting and would the whole of the Guidance be open to review? Officers confirmed that there had been some discussions with the Trade which had led to some suggestions for revision within the Guidance, as highlighted in the Appendix but that was not a formal consultation process. Further that the whole of the Guidance was amenable to review.
• Who will pay for the CCTV downloads, oversee it and ensure equipment was functioning at all times? Officers confirmed there was a choice of five approved suppliers from which drivers could choose. CCTV could not be downloaded by the driver and any tampering may be treated as a criminal offence. The Local Authority would be the data controller when the implementation date became effective and would contact a driver directly to view the CCTV footage. It was the driver’s responsibility to ensure the CCTV camera was switched on whilst they were operating and there would be measures in place to verify the CCTV was working i.e. spot checks and annual checks for data protection purposes.
• Have the Police commented and have there been any incidents that have been resolved as a result of CCTV?  The Director of Service Delivery read a statement from Inspector Burrows which referred to the benefits of CCTV.
• Would there be a payment plan to help drivers with the cost of implementing CCTV? Officers confirmed there was no financial support the authority could provide. However, one supplier would offer the option of leasing the equipment. CCTV units would cost around £500 which could be tax deductible and personal business loans might be available in addition to the leasing option. In addition, the trade had had a considerable time to prepare for the change, so the cost was not a surprise. 
• What potential impact could CCTV have in relation to drivers either leaving the industry or not joining?  Officers confirmed the Licensing Committee had agreed in principle for CCTV to be used subject to further research being undertaken regarding potential costs and the implementation date would be 31 October 2023. 
• What was the feedback from the previous consultation process that determined that CCTV should be required?  Officers advised that 5,000 people had engaged in the 8 week consultation process.  The Department of Transport standards were as a result of concerns concerning abuse of position in the trade. Safeguarding and Disability training had  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

To note that the next meeting of the Licensing Committee is scheduled to be held on Monday, 15 January 2024 at 6:00pm.

Any additional meetings of the Committee will be scheduled as and when required.

It was noted that the next meeting of the Licensing Committee was scheduled to commence at 6:00pm on Monday, 15 January 2024. Any additional meetings of the Committee would be scheduled as and when required.