Liverpool lead the way
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-news/local-news/2013/01/21/liverpool-city-council-to-introduce-stricter-checks-on-taxi-drivers-from-overseas-100252-32641870/
COUNCIL chiefs in Liverpool are to introduce stricter checks on foreign taxi drivers’ backgrounds.
City licensing officials are to ask new applicants for a certificate from their country’s embassy or consulate because they are currently unable to fully check the criminal records of drivers from abroad.
While all applicants must have had a UK or EU driving licence and undergone a Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check, there is currently no way to check convictions overseas.
The new system will require drivers from abroad to provide a letter from their consulate or embassy confirming good conduct.
Plans were revealed following a Freedom of Information request from Jim Bradley, a taxi driver in the city for more than 20 years.
Mr Bradley said: “I contacted the council as I was concerned about the fairness of the checking process.
“Our city is cosmopolitan and that is a fantastic thing, but for the safety of the public we need to be sure the backgrounds of everyone are checked to the same high standard.”
A Liverpool City Council spokesman said: “All applicants for a taxi driver’s licence have to have had a DVLA or EEC licence for a minimum of 12 months and all applicants are CRB checked.
“We do not have the power to carry out CRB style checks in foreign countries.
“However we are introducing a system shortly where applicants who come from abroad will be asked to provide a certificate of good conduct from their consulate or embassy.”
