Secret council meeting approves private hire driver's licence to man with motoring convictionsA PRIVATE hire driver's licence has been given to a man with two motoring convictions, following a council debate held in secret.
Reigate and Banstead borough councillors approved the licence request at its regulatory meeting on February 17.
The applicant, who was accompanied to the meeting by his fiancée, had two previous convictions for driving without insurance, which he disclosed on his application to the council. One took place 12 years ago, and the other in 2012.
Shortly before he began to make his case for having a licence, members of the public and press were excluded from the meeting.
Minutes from the meeting, published on the council's website, said: "The applicant confirmed that the earlier offence occurred when he took the wheel of a friend's car without realising that he was not insured. It resulted in a 28-day disqualification from driving.
"When the second offence occurred in 2012, the applicant's insurance policy had literally only just run out. For this offence he was awarded six points on his licence.
"The applicant fully accepted responsibility for his actions on both occasions and expressed his regrets."
The man, who has been a personal trainer working in London for the past three years, told councillors he had been "younger" at the time of the first offence and had "acted without thinking".
He planned to move to Redhill to "settle down with his fiancée" and had been offered employment by a local private hire company, providing his application was approved.
Councillors approved his request. The minutes said: "The committee had debated for some time and wished to strongly state that the matters were serious and that they expected the applicant to keep a clean driving and private hire driver's licence. If there were any further offences the suitability of the applicant to be a private hire driver would be brought back before the committee to consider."
Siraj Choudhury, who works in the council's legal department, said: "Having considered all aspects of this driver's application in full, Reigate and Banstead's licensing committee found the applicant to be a 'fit and proper person' to be licensed as a private hire driver.
"The item was not held in public as the applicant's personal details, such as his name and address, were discussed while deciding his application. In this case, we have determined that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.
"As such, the driver's name will not be disclosed."
Read more:
http://www.surreymirror.co.uk/Council-g ... z43iKDJuWe
Login
Register
FAQ
