Seven Highland councillors — including four licensing members who voted no — want an external independent review of the council’s licensing committee after the David Brown taxi scandal.
The Herald / LDR report Jackie Hendry, Emma Knox, Lyndsey Johnston, Kate MacLean, Sarah Atkin, Morven Reid and Kate Willis tabled a motion for a qualified outsider to examine governance, the fit-and-proper test, safeguarding, Police Scotland objections and possible bias or culture issues. It follows revelation that convicted rapist David Brown kept taxi operator licences after a closed-door majority vote; four male members who backed him later resigned amid a planned no-confidence vote. If agreed, the review would start by end-December with a report by end-March 2027, without blocking interim membership reforms. The seven say the aim is public confidence, not re-trying past cases.