Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the effectiveness of oversight of taxi licencing.

The Government is responsible for setting the regulatory structure within which 263 licensing authorities in England license the taxi and PHV trades. The Government issues guidance to assist authorities in carrying this out.

The Government has set out the measures it expects licensing authorities to take to safeguard passengers through the publication of the Statutory Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Standards in 2020. The Government has just published updated Best Practice Guidance for licensing authorities in England which encourages proportionate regulation to enable the sector to deliver safe, accessible, and affordable services that meet the differing needs of passengers. The Department for Transport engages regularly with taxi and private hire vehicle licensing authorities on a range of issues regarding the regulation of the sector.

The Government remains committed to introducing legislation, when parliamentary time allows, to enable the setting of national standards in licensing, enhancing licensing authorities’ compliance and enforcement powers and to establish a national licensing database of all licensees.