Since 2002 hackney carriage and private hire vehicle drivers are not protected by the GOV.UK – Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.
This means that all convictions are considered to decide whether relevant when applying or renewing a licence to become a hackney carriage or private hire taxi driver.
Guidelines are used to determine the relevance of all convictions in relation to application’s for hackney carriage and private hire driver’s licences and private hire operator’s licences.
Each application will be determined on its own merits. The overriding consideration will be the protection of the public, particularly children and vulnerable adults.
Hearings at the Taxi and Miscellaneous Sub Committee
In certain situations, an application may be called for a hearing at the Burnley Town Hall.
The licensing officer and the applicant/licence holder are invited to attend the sub committee meeting. The members of the sub committee will have received a report about the matter and will have it before them.
The solicitor describes the procedure to be followed at the hearing. The licensing officer presents the facts of the case and calls any witnesses they may have.
The applicant/licence holder presents the matters, which he wishes to say in support of his case. This includes an explanation of the matters mentioned in the report. The applicant / licence holder may have a representative accompany them.
The members of the sub committee have the opportunity to put questions to the applicant/licence holder and any witnesses. At the invitation of the chair, the solicitor and the licensing officer may also ask questions if there are any matters require clarification.
The chair then asks the principal parties to withdraw to allow discussion of the issue in private. The sub committee considers all the evidence and makes a decision. Once the sub committee has reached its conclusions, all parties are recalled and the decision is announced to the applicant/licence holder by the chair.
The decision will be confirmed in writing. The decision letter includes details of the right of appeal.
The applicant/licence holder is advised of the reason for the decision. This could be refusal, revocation, suspension or a written warning. Refusals and revocations will be added to the NR3 register.