https://bit.ly/2YaQvUY

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 BOLTON

DOZENS of taxis were taken off Bolton’s roads last month after spot checks revealed a catalogue of licensing and safety breaches.

Bolton Council teamed up with Greater Manchester Police (GMP) and the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency for the operation which took place over two weekends in June.

In total, 59 vehicles were stopped with 27 being handed a vehicle suspension notice for a variety of faults.

These included not having a fire extinguisher on board, insecure data systems, not having a fare card, various issues with lights or broken bulbs and illegal tyres.

Of these vehicles, one was a Hackney carriage and the rest were private hire vehicles.

A further six vehicles were given advisory notices for less serious issues.

Police also issued £100 penalty notices to 13 drivers for not wearing a seatbelt.

Cllr Anne Galloway, Bolton Council’s executive cabinet member for environmental regulatory services, said: “Passengers in Bolton should have every confidence that our private hire vehicles and Hackney carriages meet all the required safety standards.

“We continue to work with our partners in other agencies to enforce these regulations and ensure the minority of drivers who choose to break the rules are held to account.”

Sgt Paul Lenarcic from the Greater Manchester Police Safer Roads Targeting Team added: “The main aim of operation is for public safety and to reassure the public that the vehicles they get into are road legal, safe and are being driven by licensed drivers.

“Officers from the Safer Roads Targeting Team assisted Bolton Council in a multi-agency approach to achieve this.

“We will continue to work with the local authorities to ensure that people of Greater Manchester, are being kept safe on the roads.”

https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/news/17776575.taxis-taken-off-road-safety-clampdown/ 
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 DUNDEE

A taxi boss who sent headhunting letters to “hundreds” of city drivers has defended his actions, saying he has not broken the law.

Qaiser Habib, operator of Dundee City Taxis, was criticised by union chiefs and licence holders after he posted letters to the homes of the city’s cabbies asking them to join his firm.

Mr Habib, a taxi driver by trade who started his own firm in 2017, told the Tele he obtained the list of drivers directly from the council after explaining why he wanted it.

It is understood that a full list of the city’s taxi drivers, complete with name and addresses, can be purchased from the licensing board for £40.

Mr Habib said: “The list of names and addresses has been published – my side of this story is very simple.

“If you go to the council and ask for the taxi information they ask why. They checked I was credible and asked for a written consent from me. Then I paid and got the information.”

Despite concerns from local Unite taxi rep boss Chris Elder and some drivers, Mr Habib claims to have had few complaints from the city cabbies.

“I’ve had a couple of calls asking me to take names off the list if I do this again and I said that is no problem,” he added.

“But most of them are happy and have not said anything. It’s not a big deal – you can’t please everybody.

“It’s a normal business practice and compliant with the Data Protection Act.”

https://bit.ly/2Lt7UCg
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 WAKEFIELD

Tight new rules for the taxi industry in Wakefield, including automatic bans for drivers convicted of certain offences, will come into force in September.

The move is designed to bring councils across West Yorkshire and York in line with each other on standards, in a bid to dissuade drivers getting their licence from one authority and then working in another area.

A local group representing around 600 taxi drivers was concerned about the bans, and likened the proposals to treating "sweet-stealing children" the same as "career criminals".

They said there should be more focus on rehabilitating offending drivers and that each case should be treated on its individual merits.

But public consultations in other parts of the region indicated a more favourable view to the proposals.

And Wakefield Council said that the proposals still offered flexibility when considering sanctions against convicted drivers.

On Wednesday the authority's licensing committee was told that the new rules were in line with guidance published by the Institute of Licensing last year.

Council officer Helen Earnshaw said: "If we didn't adopt this, we'd have to show our reasons why to the government.

"I think it's recognised that there needs to be more harmonisation on taxi policy across the country, so drivers won't just go to one authority (for a licence) that might have lesser standards.

"The new policy categorises offences. The more offences you try to list you often find there's one that's not been listed, and that can cause problems."

Cabbies who've spent more than three months out of the UK in the past three years will now also need to produce a "certificate of good conduct" from the country they've lived in to obtain or keep a licence.

In one change from the original proposals, drivers convicted of a minor road offence would have to wait three years before reapplying for their licence, rather than five.

Those who use a mobile phone while driving however, will still be banned for five years.

Ms Earnshaw added: "We would take action if someone had seven points or more on their driving licence.

"So if they've been caught speeding twice and got six points, they wouldn't be caught out."

Councillors voted to approve the new measures but agreed to delay implementing them until September 1 to allow time for the changes to be communicated.

https://bit.ly/2Y4DxnG