ROUND THE COUNCILS
WEST NORTHANTS: MP HITS OUT AT NEW POLICY PLANS
Wellingborough MP Peter Bone has hit out at “bizarre” plans from West Northamptonshire Council (WNC) to impose new taxi policies. The plans, which include the implementation of a dress code, were called “nonsense” by the veteran Conservative MP as he spoke on the Jeremy Vine show on Wednesday morning, March 1. The draft Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Policy (
https://bit.ly/3YbJaiQ) from WNC would introduce a penalty point system where drivers would face losing their licence for not complying with the drivers’ dress code or not arriving for a booking on time. WNC insists the proposals are to keep passengers safe and has announced that they would be extending the public consultation on the plans. Mr Bone’s comments come after over 100 taxi drivers staged a protest outside Northampton’s guildhall in which some called the proposals “draconian” and “racist” (see Protest Plight page 17). WNC said the draft policy aimed to “maintain vital safety standards.” New proposals include strength- ening the “fit and proper person” test and tests on drivers’ spoken English. Drivers would get points for breaking certain guidelines. These include two points for failure to keep a vehicle reasonably clean or failing to search a vehicle after a journey and two points for not being “clean and respectable in their dress.” The proposals would also require foreign nationals who have stayed in another country for more than three months to obtain a ‘certificate of good conduct’ from the relevant embassy of that country. This also applies to UK citizens if they have lived outside the country for more than three months at a time. Members of the App Drivers & Couriers Union (ACDU) organised a rally through Northampton town centre on Friday, February 24. Those at the march said they found the proposals “racist and misguided”. Speaking on Channel 5’s Jeremy Vine show, Mr Bone said he “would be on the protests with the taxi drivers outside the Guildhall”. He said: “It seems as though they’re going to give you a number of points if you don’t dress properly and I don’t know what dressing properly means. It is most bizarre.” “I just want to know that the taxi driver is going to get me from A to B safely, and I don’t care what they wear. These taxi drivers are superb,
I’ve never had any 50
problem with any of them.” This seems a bit of a nonsense” Host Jeremy Vine then asked the MP “Why can’t they wear a tie? You’re wearing one.” Mr Bone responded: “I have to wear the uniform, don’t I? I have to wear this.” The panel erupted into laughter when Jeremy said: “A person in a suit, if he’s a man, is going to be a better driver than a person in shorts, and there’s no question about that.” WNC announced on 2 March that it was extending the public consultation (
https://bit.ly/3EU54QZ) from March 26 to to Sunday 23 April, “to allow people more time to fully review it and consider their views.” Cllr David Smith, Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Engagement, and Regulatory Services on WNC, said: “We have been encouraged by the high level of engagement and feedback we have already received as a result of this public consultation. A number of people have asked that we extend the consultation period to enable further time for residents, businesses and professional drivers to fully review the policy and have their say.
LEEDS: REVIEW ON VEHICLE STANDARDS
Leeds City Council has launched a review on taxi vehicle condition standards, following updates to national guidance. The review, led by a working group of Leeds City Council’s Licensing Committee, will consult drivers, the public and passenger groups on potential updates to hackney and private hire vehicle condition standards in Leeds, with a specific focus on standards for wheelchair accessible vehicles. As part of the consultation process there will be a series of meetings with the trade and passenger groups, which will include representatives for disabled, older, female and school passengers. Public drop-in sessions will also be scheduled around the city to allow all interested parties to have their voices heard and influence potential updates to vehicle condition standards. Following the public consultation and review, members of the licensing committee will recommend options to Leeds City Council’s Executive Board in response to the updated national guidance. It is expected that the initial review will run from March to August 2023, which will be followed by further public consultation on detailed proposals.
APRIL 2023 PHTM
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