middyh wrote:
How would I find out if the council have undertaken regular demand observations on a monthly basis?
Telephone, committee services and ask for the clerk who deals with Taxi licensing. Ask them to send you the minutes for the last 12 months. They may tell you they can be found on the internet.
Once you have them look to see if there is any reference to stance surveys being undertaken. If there are no references in the minutes phone the head Taxi licensing officer and ask him or her, if unmet demand is being measured on a regular basis? If they say it is being measured ask them for the documentation appertaining to such evidence and if the evidence was ever placed before the Taxi licensing committee. If the LO states that there is no evidence and council relies solely on a survey conducted some time ago, then you are going to have to ascertain if the survey is historical in nature or it can be deemed recent enough to dissuade you from applying for a license at this moment in time.
I suggest you read both Coyle and Dundee it will give you a good understanding of the relevant case law. Both cases can be found on TDO.
Regards
JD