Hanson goes to the Divisional Court
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• Lord Parker (Lord Chief Justice), Lord Justice Winn and Mr. Justice James, sitting in the Queen's Bench Divisional. Court on Wednesday, granted R. Hanson and Sons Ltd., of Wakefield, leave to apply for an order of certiorari quashing the revocation of the company's 75-vehicle B licence made in Leeds last week.
On the third day of the public inquiry last Thursday, at which the Contract A to B application was being reheard after its remission by the Transport Tribunal to the Yorkshire LA, Mr. H. E. Robson, and also a new application was being heard for all Hanson's 268 vehicles to be placed on one A licence, the LA said that he was inclined to agree with the objectors' submission for a revocation of the B licence. If the licence were revoked and Hanson applied for a short-term licence for 55 vehicles, this would be granted to run until the inquiry was resumed on March 3. The applicant announced his intention to appeal to the Divisional Court against such a course and asked for a stay of seven days.
Solicitor for the 27 private objectors, Mr. J. .A. Backhouse, had submitted that implicit in the Tribunal's decision that the application should be reheard for the LA to hear
evidence from the National Coal Board was that, before this could be done, the former grant must be set aside and the licensing position returned to the status quo. At the time of the first hearing (CM March 8 and April 5 1968) Hanson had been operating 75 vehicles under short-term licence. But in view of the fact that 20 of those vehicles had not been operating since last October, as had been revealed on the previous day of the present hearing (CM January 10), a short-term licence for only 55 vehicles should be granted. If Hanson wished to operate more than this number, evidence of need must be shown.
Mr. R. M. Yorke, for Hanson, submitted that the LA had no powers to revoke the grant and asked that such revocation be withheld for seven days so that application could be made to the Divisional Court on that point.
The LA granted this request and on Wednesday the company was granted leave to apply for an order of certiorari quashing the revocation and also for an order of prohibition.
The LA was not represented at the hearing but will have an opportunity of being represented when the matter is again before the Court next Tuesday.
Mr. R. M. Yorke, for Hanson, submitted that an LA was sunctus officio once he had granted a licence unless the Transport Tribunal, on appeal, thought it should be either varied or revoked.
In the present case, said counsel, the B licence had been granted by the LA and the matter had then gone to appeal. The sole ground of the appeal had been that an NCB witness had not been present at the hearing of the application. By consent it had been agreed that the matter should go back to the LA for a further hearing.
Counsel said that, although a rehearing had been intended, the LA had in fact purported to revoke the licence but had agreed not to put this decision into effect for seven days to allow the company to appeal to the Queen's Bench Divisional Court.
They had discovered through a communication from the Press, said counsel, that the L.A. had purported to revoke the licence on Monday and Hanson would have to surrender the licence on Monday Jan. 20.
Lord Justice Winn commented that the mistake seemed to have been due to the Tribunal's use of the words "appeal to be allowed in part".