Concern Felt About Short-term Grants
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LICENSING CASEBOOK
by NORMAN H.TILSLEY
Objectors have no say
TaIE question of whether or not short-term licence applications should, as matter of course, be published in "Applications and Decisions" was
raised before the Deputy South Eastern Licensing Authority, Mr. A. C. Shepherd, at Southampton recently, when Waterlooville Plant Hire Co., of Denmead, unsuccessfully applied tO vary a B licence by the addition of four tippers.
The applicants, it appeared, had successfully tendered for a contract to carry road materials in connection with some road construction work in the area.
They applied, in the first place, for a short-term licence, and were granted one last December. At the inquiry for the substantive licence, certain objectors complained that the first thing they had known of the grant was by reading of it in "As and Ds." Had they known beforehand, they said, they would have objected. • The local sub-area chairman of the R.H.A.—he was one of the objectors, in his private capacity—gave evidence. He said that the Authority's office had informed the Association of the application; he had had the matter investigated and, as a result, had been informed erroneously that the vehicles concerned were dumptrucks, not tippers. The R.H.A. in the district, and officials of ,British Road Services, are concerned at the general approach to the grant of short-term applications—and this complaint is by no means restricted to the South Eastern area.
It would appear that only B.R.S. and the R.H.A. are asked if they object. If the answer is "No," then the short-term licence is almost certainly granted.
Not all A and B licence holders are members of the R.H.A., and it would seem that the only fair approach to this matter would be to publish every shortterm application for all to see and object to, if they wish.
The Northern Authority some time ago announced that such licences would only be granted in his area after a full investigation. This seems to be the only just and equitable way of dealing with this tricky problem.