Agenda, decisions and minutes

At this point in the meeting, the Executive Member is asked to declare:

·        any personal interests not included on the Register of Interests;

·        any prejudicial interests;

·        any disclosable pecuniary interests

which they may have in respect of business on this agenda.

The Executive Member confirmed that he had no personal interests not included on the Register of Interests, nor any prejudicial or disclosable pecuniary interests, to declare in the business on the agenda.

To approve and sign the minutes of the Decision Session held on 24 September 2018.

Resolved:  That the minutes of the Decision Session held on 24 September 2018 be approved and signed by the Executive Member as a correct record.

At this point in the meeting, members of the public who have registered to speak can do so. The deadline for registering is 5.00pm on Friday, 16 November 2018. Members of the public can speak on agenda items or matters within the Executive Member’s remit.

To register to speak please contact the Democracy Officer for the meeting, on the details at the foot of the agenda.

Filming, Recording or Webcasting Meetings

Please note that, subject to available resources, this meeting may be filmed and webcast,or recorded, including any registered public speakers who have given their permission. The broadcast can be viewed at http://www.york.gov.uk/webcasts or, if recorded, this will be uploaded onto the Council’s website following the meeting.

Residents are welcome to photograph, film or record Councillors and Officers at all meetings open to the press and public. This includes the use of social media reporting, i.e. tweeting.  Anyone wishing to film, record or take photos at any public meeting should contact the Democracy Officer (contact details are at the foot of this agenda) in advance of the meeting.

The Council’s protocol on Webcasting, Filming & Recording of Meetings ensures that these practices are carried out in a manner both respectful to the conduct of the meeting and all those present.  It can be viewed at

https://www.york.gov.uk/downloads/file/11406/protocol_for_webcasting_filming_and_recording_of_council_meetings_20160809

It was reported that there had been no registrations to speak at the meeting under the Council’s Public Participation Scheme.

This report seeks approval to implement proposed new fees in relation to Animal Welfare licensing, in accordance with the new regulations that came into force on 1 October 2018.

Resolved:  That Option 1 be approved and the new proposed fees relating to Animal Welfare licensing covered by the new regulations, as set out in paragraphs 15 and 16 of the report, be implemented from 1 December 2018.

Reason:     To allow the council to recover the cost of the licensing functions in relation to Animal Welfare licensing.

The Executive Member considered a report which sought approval to implement new fees for Animal Welfare licensing, following the introduction of new licensing regulations.

The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 had come into force on 1 October.  They introduced more prescriptive and wide-ranging legal requirements for licensing a number of functions, as well as licence conditions and a rating system. Details were provided in paragraphs 3 to 9 of the report.  As noted in paragraph 6, most of the licences currently issued by the council were due for renewal before 31 March 2019.

The proposed fees, detailed in paragraphs 15 and 16, had been set at a cost recovery level.  Licences would initially be granted for one year, except for the keeping or training of animals for exhibition, for which the regulations stipulated a three year licence. The following options were considered, as detailed in paragraphs 12 to 17:

Option 1 – approve the implementation of the new proposed fees from 1 December 2018.  This would prevent any financial loss to the council when renewing licences before 31 March 2019.

Option 2 – defer the decision until the budget process in February 2019, implementing the new fees from 1 April 2019.

In response to questions from the Executive Member, Officers at the meeting confirmed that:

·        The number of applications for dog breeding licences was increasing, and the criteria for needing a licence included the number of litters and whether the pups were sold for profit.

·        Dog walkers did not require a licence, but ‘day care’ for dogs was a licensable activity.

Resolved:  That Option 1 be approved and the new proposed fees relating to Animal Welfare licensing covered by the new regulations, as set out in paragraphs 15 and 16 of the report, be implemented from 1 December 2018.

Reason:     To allow the council to recover the cost of the licensing functions in relation to Animal Welfare licensing.