22 June 2016: Highland Licensing Committee

A special meeting of the Highland Licensing Committee will take place in the Council Chamber, Council Headquarters, Glenurquhart Road, Inverness on Wednesday 22 June 2016 at 11.00 am.

You are invited to attend and a note of the business to be considered is attached.

The continued item to be considered is one which Members resolved, at the Licensing Committee meeting on 14 June 2016, to hear in private.  The meeting will accordingly not be webcast.

Members are reminded that during determination of licensing items, in order to be entitled to participate in any vote, Members must be present throughout all of the proceedings.

Members are further reminded that mobile devices, including mobile phones, can be used for following the agenda/reports and delivering speeches but should not be used for any form of communication (text or tweet) during the meeting.

Yours faithfully

Susan Blease, Principal Solicitor – Regulatory Services
(for Depute Chief Executive/Director of Corporate Development)

Business

(Chair – Dr I Cockburn)

1. Apologies for absence
Leisgeulan

2. Declarations of interest
Foillseachaidhean Com-pàirt

Members are asked to consider whether they have an interest to declare in relation to any item on the agenda for this meeting.  Any Member making a declaration of interest should indicate whether it is a financial or non-financial interest and include some information on the nature of the interest. Advice may be sought from Officers prior to the meeting taking place.

3. The Committee is again asked to resolve that, under Section 50A(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, the public be excluded from the meeting during discussion of the following continued item on the ground that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 7A of the Act.

4. Zoo Licensing Act 1981
Achd Ceadachd Sùtha 1981

4.1 Zoo Licence – Black Isle Wildlife Park – continued hearing

There is re-circulated Report No HLC/058/16 by the Environmental Health Manager relating to the Zoo licence for the Black Isle Wildlife Park (Black Isle Ward).  This Report was originally circulated at item 12.1 of the agenda for the meeting of the Highland Licensing Committee on 14 June 2016.  At that meeting, the Committee agreed to continue the item to a special meeting.  It is the original Report which is now re-circulated.

The Committee is invited to determine this matter in accordance with the Council’s hearings procedure.  The licence holders have been invited to attend the continued hearing.

Minute of the special meeting of the Highland Licensing Committee held in the Council Chamber, Glenurquhart Road, Inverness on Wednesday 22 June 2016 at 11.00 am.

Present:

Dr I Cockburn, Mr A Duffy, Mr C Fraser, Mr R Greene and Mr J Stone.

In attendance:

Ms S Blease, Principal Solicitor (Regulatory Services)
Mr Scott Taylor, Administrative Assistant, Committee Services
Mr S Fraser, Head of Corporate Governance
Mr A Yates, Environmental Health Manager
Mr B Murdoch, Environmental Health Officer
Inspector Michael Middlehurst, Police Scotland
Mr S Whitaker, Scottish Natural Heritage

Also in attendance:

Item 4.1: Mr G Mann, Solicitor for the licence holders

Dr I Cockburn in the Chair

Business

1.  Apologies for absence 
Leisgeulan

Apologies for absence were intimated on behalf of Mr A Henderson, Mrs L MacDonald, Mr W MacKay, Mr J Rosie, Mrs G Sinclair, Ms M Smith and Mr H Wood.

2.  Declarations of interest
Foillseachaidhean com-pàirt

There were no declarations of interest.

3.  The Committee AGREED to resolve that, under Section 50A(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, the public be excluded from the meeting during discussion of the following continued item on the ground that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 7A of the Act.

4.  Zoo Licensing Act 1981
Achd Ceadachd Sutha 1981

4.1  Zoo licence – Black Isle Wildlife Park – continued hearing

There had been re-circulated to members only Report No HLC/058/16 by the Environmental Health Manager relating to the Black Isle Wildlife Park, a licensed zoo.  The Report invited the Committee to note the views of the Scottish Government appointed specialist vet set out in the appendix and, on hearing from the licence holders, to issue a zoo closure direction under section 16B(5)(b) of the Zoo Licensing Act 1981 if satisfied that the zoo had been conducted in a disorderly manner.

The licence holders were not in attendance but were represented at the hearing by their Solicitor, Mr G Mann.  Mr Mann confirmed that he was instructed by the licence holders not to oppose the making of a zoo closure direction if the Committee were minded to make such a direction.

The Committee AGREED to make a zoo closure direction.

The meeting closed at 11.15 am.