Agenda and minutes

Agenda and minutes

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Speaking at a Council or Committee meeting

Venue: Barrister's Room - Town Hall

Contact: John Mitchell, Committee and Member Services Officer 

Items
No. Item

33.

Apologies for Absence

Apologies were received from Councillor Landell-Mills

Signed minutes 11 December 2017 pdf icon PDF 542 KB

34.

Declarations of Interest

None.

35.

Procedure to be followed at the meeting pdf icon PDF 89 KB

The Chair reminded those present that the procedure was outlined in the paper accompanying the agenda.

Additional documents:

36.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 93 KB

 

Recommendation: That the minutes of the meeting held on 30 October 2017 be APPROVED as a true and accurate record.

Minutes:

The Sub-Committee resolved to APPROVE the minutes of the meeting held on 30 October 2017 as a true and accurate record.

37.

Application for the Renewal of a Sex Shop Establishment Licence pdf icon PDF 6 MB

The Head of Community Services has submitted a report to consider the application for the renewal of a Sex Establishment Licence: Private Shop, 54

Cowley Road, Oxford.

Minutes:

The Head of Community Services had submitted a report to inform the determination  of an application submitted by Darker Enterprises Ltd  for the renewal of a Sex Establishment Licence for its premises at 54 Cowley Road.

 

The Licensing Officer introduced the report. The shop had been first licensed in 2003 and had held a licence without revocation or refusal since that date.  Two representations had been received in response to the application which made particular reference to the location of the shop as potential grounds for refusal of the licence. He drew attention to the parts of the report which detailed the legislation governing the issue of such licences.

 

In response to questions from the Sub-Committee he confirmed that: there had been no complaints in relation to this establishment; no objections from Thames Valley Police to the application; officers visited the premises 3 times a year to ensure compliance with the conditions of the licence;  the shop fulfilled its responsibility to notify the Council when it employed new members of staff.

 

Neither the Applicant nor the objectors were present at the meeting.  The Applicant had however submitted a letter for consideration by the Sub-Committee. The letter explained that representatives of the Applicant were unable to attend because of inclement weather. It went on to draw the Sub-Committee’s attention to the minutes of a hearing of the City Council’s Licensing and Registration Sub-Committee held on 20 August 2013, at which it had been agreed to renew the licence for this premises. These minutes set out the grounds for agreeing to the licence on that occasion.

 

In the absence of a further contribution from either Applicant or objectors the Sub-Committee moved to make a determination.

 

Decision and reason

 

The Sub-Committee noted the legal advice that it could not take into account any moral objections and that the Applicant was entitled to have the application granted unless any of the statutory grounds for refusal were met.

It had been noted that  the premises had been licensed since 2003 when licensing powers were adopted in Oxford and had first opened in 1981 when there was no requirement to be licensed. There was no record of complaints or incidents concerning the premises during this time and the licence had been reviewed annually since 2003.

 

It had been noted that Thames Valley Police had raised no objections to the application.

 

It had been noted that the premises would be subject to conditions and regularly inspected by officers to  ensure compliance with them.

 

The Sub-Committee had no reason to believe that there had been any significant change in the character of the area since the last issue of a licence.

The  Sub-Committee noted the reference by the objectors to the Bullfinch case. However there was no evidence to link the premises with the case and no reason to believe that they were in any way connected.

 

The Sub-Committee noted that on this occasion only two objections had been received.

 

The Sub-Committee was not satisfied that any of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 37.

38.

Exempt Matters

If the Sub-Committee wishes to exclude the press and the public from the meeting during consideration of any aspects of the preceding or following agenda items it will be necessary for the Sub-Committee to pass a resolution in accordance with the provisions of Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 specifying the grounds on which their presence could involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as described in specific paragraphs of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act if and so long, as in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

Minutes:

The Sub-Committee resolved that under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972  the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the remaining items of business on the grounds that their presence would involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as described in Paragraph 3 of  Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act.

 

The Sub-Committee considered matters relating to Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Vehicle licensing in private.

 

The Sub-Committee had xxx cases before it. In xx case..

39.

Application to drive Private Hire Vehicles

 

The Head of Community Services has submitted a report detailing an application to drive Hackney Carriages and Private Hire vehicles.

 

Minutes:

The Head of Community Services had submitted a copy of a report detailing an application to drive Private Hire Vehicles in the City.

 

 

The Sub-Committee resolved to:

 

1.    Grant a licence for one year in the first instance

2.    Delegate to the Head of Community Services the power to suspend or revoke the licence or refer the matter to the Sub-Committee should any complaints regarding the applicant’s driving or behaviour come to the Licencing Officers’ attention.

40.

Application to drive Private Hire Vehicles

The Head of Community Services has submitted a report detailing an application to drive Hackney Carriages and Private Hire vehicles.

 

Minutes:

The Head of Community Services had submitted a copy of a report detailing an application to drive Private Hire Vehicles in the City.

 

The Sub-Committee resolved to:

 

Refuse the application.  

 

41.

Application to drive Private Hire Vehicles

The Head of Community Services has submitted a report detailing an application to drive Hackney Carriages and Private Hire vehicles.

 

Minutes:

The Head of Community Services had submitted a copy of a report detailing an application to drive Hackney Carriage and  Private Hire Vehicles in the City.

 

The Sub-Committee resolved to:

 

1.    Grant a for one year in the first instance

2.    Delegate to the Head of Community Services the power to suspend or revoke the licence or refer the matter to the Sub-Committee should any issues regarding the applicant’s licence come to the Licencing Officers’ attention.

3.    Require the applicant to provide proof of his insurance renewal for the next 4 years.

 

42.

Confidential Minutes

 

Recommendation: That the confidential minutes of the meeting held on 30 October 2017 be APPROVED as a true and accurate record.

 

Minutes:

The Sub-Committee resolved to APPROVE the confidential minutes of the meeting held on 30 October 2017 as a true and accurate record.

43.

Dates of Future Meetings

The dates of future meetings (if required) are:

 

Monday 22 January 2018

Monday 05 March 2018

Monday 16 April 2018

           

All meetings start at 5.30pm.

Minutes:

Meeting are scheduled to be held on the following dates if necessary:

 

22 January    2018

05 March       2018

16 April          2018

30 May           2018

25 June         2018

06 August      2018

 

All meetings start at 5.30