Issue - decisions

The Committee received a report from the Environmental Health Manager.

The report advised Cambridge City Council, as the Licensing Authority, was responsible for processing and issuing licences for a wide range of activities.

The Council needed to demonstrate that the fees it charged for such licences had been set in accordance with the law and best practice, so as to recover its allowable costs in administering the various licensing regimes for which it was responsible.

Fees should be set to avoid either a surplus or a subsidy where possible and adjusted, if necessary, in succeeding years to achieve and maintain the correct balance.

The Officer’s report set out the revised fees and charges for licences and associated items, which it was proposed should be made with effect from 1 April 2019.

In response to Members’ questions the Environmental Health Manager said the following:

       i.          Skin piercing fees were omitted in error from the Officer’s report (para 3.8). They would rise by 2% in-line with other charges.

     ii.          Fees were put up some years ago as the council was not covering its costs.

   iii.          The council was generally covering its costs currently (eg taxi committee hearings). Officers were looking at where the council could charge fees, now and in future, based on case law. In the meantime, 2% seemed viable for this year.

   iv.          A number of fees were set nationally by Central Government, so the council was lobbying to set these locally as they were areas where the council was not covering costs.

The Committee:

Resolved (unanimously) to approve the level of fees and charges with effect from 1 April 2019, as set out in Appendix A of the Officer’s report, and to request officers to communicate the charges to the businesses, taxi trade and public.