This is a bit like the committee member's criticism of the council from last week. Only a bit more pointed
But he's the same party as the councillor, and also represents the Kirkcaldy area
David Torrance MSP: Uber licence decision was scandalous
https://www.fifetoday.co.uk/news/politi ... us-9233323
Last week's handling of the Uber licensing application was an embarrassment for Fife Council and a serious failure of public administration.
The application by Uber Scot Ltd attracted 431 objections from local taxi operators, drivers, businesses and residents.
All of these people took the time to submit representations and prepared to make their case before the Regulation & Licensing Committee, yet when the meeting began they were told that their objections were legally incompetent and could not be considered. The application was subsequently approved.
Residents and business owners are not expected to be experts in licensing law and rely on council officers to guide them through these processes and most importantly, to inform them when something is wrong.
If there were problems with these objections, why were they not identified months ago? Why were people not contacted and given an opportunity to correct any errors? More importantly, why were individuals reportedly being contacted in advance about attending and speaking at the hearing if their objections were not to be considered?
All of these questions need to now be answered by Fife Council. When more than 400 people invest their time and energy into submitting objections, only to discover at the start of the meeting that your objection has been ruled out, is nothing short of scandalous.
The fact that concerns have now been raised about whether the competency issues could have been identified much earlier only adds to the sense that something went very badly wrong. This was a serious administrative failure which has left the public paying the price.
The people of Fife are entitled to know how this happened, who was responsible, and what lessons will be learned. Regardless of whether you supports Uber's arrival in Fife, I think we can all agree that residents and local businesses deserve far better than this.
Fife Council now owes the public a full, transparent explanation and a commitment that such a shambolic handling of a licensing application will never happen again.
I have written to Ken Gourlay, Chief Executive of Fife Council, asking what investigation will now take place and what action will be taken to restore confidence that those responsible for administering these processes are doing so competently.
I look forward to his answer.
