Not my problem: South Eastern LA
Page 14
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
• A Licensing Authority need not consider the fact that environmental conditions might lead to a company to take action which worsens a problem, South Eastern LA Randall Thornton said last week when he granted Rowe and Company an additional operating centre at Hook, Hampshire, subject to conditions.
The fruit and vegetable merchants held a licence for 45 vehicles and five trailers and sought to take over the Hook depot and 23 vehicles from Farmhouse Frozen Foods.
Seventeen representations were lodged by residents who complained about noise.
The company said it is not possible to specify the times when the depot could be closed at night because de livery vehicles could arrive at any time.
Perishable produce has to be picked up at certain times and it is impossible to control the arrival times of vehicles.
No limitation on the hours could be accepted and any such conditions would have the same effect as a refusal of the application as the operation of the company's own vehicles would become impossible.
Since the company was committed to continue operations at Hook it would cease to keep its own vehicles at the depot and would employ outside haulage contractors to do all the work.
That would mean more vehicle movements around the depot and the company would have less control over the vehicles and drivers. Thornton said the company's use of the depot would give rise to adverse effects on the environmental conditions and in granting the application he imposed conditions restricting the maintenance and movement of authorised vehicles to between Sam and lOpm on Mondays to Fridays and between 5am and noon on Saturdays and banned it completely on Sundays and Bank Holidays.
He said the public has a right to have the law enforced on its merits without consideration of what an operator might do as a result.
To require an LA to weigh evidence and reach conclusions on to what an operator might do to avoid or mitigate the effects of any decision would lead him into the realms of conjecture,