TUESDAY IN PARLIAMENT

Joan Ryan Labour, Enfield North

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent meetings

 (a) he, (b) other Ministers and (c) staff of his Department have had with (i) the British Transport Police, (ii) taxi firms and (iii) private hire vehicle (minicab) firms on tackling the county lines drug trade.

  (Citation: HC Deb, 16 October 2018, cW)

Victoria Atkins The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, Minister for Women

We recognise the value and opportunity presented by those working in the transport sector to identify perpetrators and potential victims of county lines who are being exploited to move drugs. The Home Office has therefore been working with Crimestoppers to deliver an awareness raising campaign with these sectors about county lines.

The Home Office has met with representatives of the British Transport Police, local authority taxi licensing managers, Licensed Private Hire Car Association and Über and officials continue to engage with the transport sector in tackling county lines.
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WAKEFIELD

Taxi drivers say new rules introduced by Wakefield Council are stopping them from taking disabled passengers.

The local authority is bringing in legislation which would stop cabbies from using cars manufactured before September 2016, a move which the district’s drivers say is forcing around 90 per cent of their fleet off the road.

READ: Wakefield Tories call for council leader Peter Box to quit
Now the local Private Hire and Hackney Carriage Association says the new rule is making it impossible for them to buy enough wheelchair-friendly vehicles to serve the area.

A petition, which the associations says has already been signed by 200 drivers, will be submitted to the council in the coming weeks.

Association chairman Wajid Ali said: “Our customers are upset we can’t provide them with the service they deserve but it’s out of our hands.

“Under the Disability Discrimination Act it’s up to local authorities to help drivers be disabled-friendly.

“The NHS used to provide transport for patients between home and hospital, but they’ve cut back so much now we’ve picked up a lot of that work.

“That’s one area where taxis have a vital role to play in our society.”

Mr Ali was also critical of plans to introduce more legislation, which will be discussed by councillors next week.

Under consideration are plans to make it harder for cabbies with a driving conviction to get their licence back.

But Mr Ali claims that the system in Wakefield is already “over-regulated” and he’s accused the council of not being “business-friendly”.

He said: “Our vehicles are subject to tests every six months, while every other local authority does it once a year over five years and then periodically after that.

“It costs us £160, and we’re paying that twice a year for no reason.

“There’s no chance that will change with this new legislation.

“If we get so much as a parking ticket we have to inform the council within seven days. We can’t do anything without the council knowing about it, so this will make no difference.”

Liz Ogden, Wakefield Council’s Interim City Solicitor, said: “Following extensive consultation, we have updated our hackney carriage and private hire vehicle standards as part of our commitment to ensure that passengers and drivers are safe when travelling and that vehicles meet emissions standards - promoting the uptake of cleaner fuels and improving air quality in the district.

“Those drivers whose vehicles do not meet the new standards have been given a two year period to comply with the new legislation, meaning that they would not need to change their vehicles until 2020, by which time Euro 6 diesels would potentially be five years old and cost less.”

https://goo.gl/MzVi6m
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UNICAB Student Taxi app service launched in Nottingham

Working in partnership with the University of Nottingham Students’ Union (UoNSU), Nottingham’s biggest network of Taxi companies have developed a new Taxi booking app which is designed specifically for the students of Nottingham.

Simply put, the SU commissioned a thought forum to ask students what they wanted from a supplier and we designed the app to meet these requirements.

The apps main features are:

    No Surge Charging

    Fixed Prices (dramatically less expensive than standard fares)

    Loyalty Scheme which gives students money back on rides

    On Demand Booking (Only book taxis which are available now)

The app will give Nottingham students access to a combined fleet of over 1000 Taxis from DG Cars, Royal Cars, Trent Cars and Lenton Cars.

The app is available to download now on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.


 Toby Metcalf- Marketing Manager for Unicab said: ‘We believe this app will make travel for students not only easier but cheaper too. The loyalty scheme gives students money back and allows them to gift their loyalty balance to a friend.

 We are committed to ensuring students can travel with us knowing that the cost of travel will not “Surge” if Taxis are busy unlike other companies.’

Michael Lappin, Commercial Manager at UoNSU added:

“This service provision was created and shaped by our members and collaboratively delivered by UNICAB.

 To put in place an App & Brand that delivers no surcharging, fixed pricing and an inbuilt reward system is testament to all involved, and one that will have a positive impact for all students at the University of Nottingham.”

https://goo.gl/DQMCqh
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The latest spot checks on taxis operating in Sandwell found 17 out of 20 vehicles met all legal requirements.

Among those doing the checks were Police Dog Jasper - who didn’t discover anything untoward during his work.

The council’s taxi licensing team carries out regular checks to make sure vehicles, drivers and passengers are safe.

Saturday’s operation was aimed at checking the roadworthiness of licensed Private Hire and Hackney Carriage vehicles.

Officers also talked to drivers to educate them how to look out for Child Sexual Exploitation and to be alert to the use of drugs in their vehicles.

Twenty taxis were stopped and only minor issues were found with three of the taxis stopped by the operation.

The majority of the vehicles stopped were registered in Sandwell, plus one from Birmingham, three from Dudley and two from Wolverhampton.

Minor problems were found with one Sandwell registered vehicle’s number plate, which has since been resolved, and another had a small mechanical problem. One other vehicle registered with Dudley Council had a defective tyre.

Sandwell Council’s cabinet member for public health and protection Councillor Elaine Costigan said: “This was a very successful operation.

“Our staff and colleagues from the police and DVSA found very few issues with the vehicles. These operations are key to driving up standards and making sure taxi drivers realise they have responsibilities – particularly when it comes to vehicles being safe and roadworthy.

“I would like to thank our taxi licensing team and MOT testers, as well as colleagues from West Midlands Police and the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency for their hard work keeping taxis safe for everybody.”

https://goo.gl/U8C9WZ 
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