TDO wrote:
I thougth they could only cover fees to cover admin, thus there isn't any real rationale in the regard you mention.
Cover fees within the department possibly but in Gateshead there is no way that the fees we pay only cover the cost of admin.
I say this because we have now got NO designated Taxi Licensing staff, they are all shared resourse between so many different sections within the department currently named Development & Enterprise.
The HC and PH trades currently pay in excess of a quarter of a million pounds a year into the licensing account.
Before Xmas it was suggested through a working party meeting that PH should have a sticker on the front door stating that it was a private hire vehicle and journeys must be pre booked, the decision has to be passed to the finance department to see if they could afford to produce such stickers. We also suggested new plates for both HC and PH vehicles showing vehicle details and a date of licence expiry, again this was refered to finance.
I have asked why this was the case, and have also asked on more than one occasion for an explaination as to where the millions of pounds have gone since deregulation of numbers. It is now with the ombudsman, but I will be approaching the council again and will be requesting all relevant council documentation under the new Freedon of Information Act. which I beleieve came into for4ce on January 1st.
B. Lucky