ALL THINGS LICENSING
Information about the Committee and about how to respond to the inquiry are available at:
https://shorturl.at/jT26n
As readers will have guessed from previous articles, I am somewhat passionate about
5. What would effective reform look like in terms of enforcement, passenger safety and safeguarding, and regulatory consistency? Is there a role for regional transport authorities?
6. How are digital ride-hailing platforms impacting standards in the sector, and is further regulation in this area required?
7. How effective, accessible, and trusted are complaints and incident reporting systems in the taxi and private hire vehicle (PHV) sector, for both passengers and drivers?
8. How effective is the National Register of Licence Revocations and Refusals (NR3) in supporting consistent licensing decisions across local authorities? What barriers, if any, are limiting its use or impact?
9. What are the implications for taxi and PHV licensing of the future rollout of autonomous vehicles?
Transport Committee Chair Ruth Cadbury MP said:
“When it comes to the licensing and regulation of taxi and private hire vehicles, a strange patchwork of driver and vehicle standards now exists across every town and city in the country.
“This inconsistency has given rise to a situation that just isn’t good enough for drivers or for the public, who can unknowingly leave themselves vulnerable when getting into the back of a stranger’s car.
“This Committee will investigate whether a more standardised, more rational regulatory and enforcement regime could do away with the phenomenon of one city receiving applications from all over the country. We want to examine how an improved system could give greater confidence to consumers, particularly disabled people, women, children and other vulnerable people. And we need to look at how the system could make it clear who a passenger can complain to if standards aren’t met.”
PHTM AUGUST 2025
ensuring the legislation is adequate for the trade, local authorities and passengers, and therefore would encourage all members of the trade, particularly those part of an association or union, as well as any licensing officers reading to respond to this call for evidence.
DfT will legislate to address inconsistent taxi/PH licensing standards
In addition following Baroness Casey’s National Audit on Group-Based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, the Government has confirmed plans to reform taxi licensing arrangements:
Responding to a written question from Lord Spellar, Minister of State Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill, stated that the Department for Transport will legislate to address inconsistent standards in the licensing of taxi and private hire vehicle drivers. He said all options will be considered, including tackling the issue of out-of- area working, introducing national standards, and strengthening enforcement, with passenger safety as the primary concern.
In advance of legislation, interim measures will be introduced. These include consulting on proposals that would transfer responsibility for taxi and private hire licensing to local transport authorities and evaluating how existing statutory guidance might be reinforced to better safeguard the public. Authorities’ compliance with current guidance is under review, with non-compliance subject to accountability.
Lord Hendy also highlighted protections already in place, including mandatory background checks for all licensed drivers across England and the use of a unified licensing database since 2023. This database prevents individuals who have been refused a licence on safety grounds in one area from obtaining one elsewhere. He cautioned that any changes must be carefully considered to avoid reducing access to properly vetted services or unintentionally encouraging illegal operators who bypass licensing checks.
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