R (Lionel Morris) v Newport City Council

In a claim brought by a representative of the Newport Hackney Drivers’ Association against a decision of Newport City Council to introduce a policy of vehicular age restrictions on the licensing of hackney carriages, it was held that the decision was unlawful due principally to a failure properly to consult over the introduction of the policy. The High Court considered the “Sedley requirements” of effective consultation and offered wide-ranging guidance on the standards of procedural fairness expected in local government decision-making. It determined to quash the decision, rejecting the argument that relief should be denied on the basis that Newport City Council might lawfully reintroduce the same policy. The ruling allows many hackney carriage drivers in Newport, who would otherwise have been put out of business as a result of being unable to afford newer vehicles, to continue plying their trade for the time being.

Pushpinder Saini QC and Hanif Mussa acted successfully on behalf of the claimant.