Taxi Driver Online

Burnham ‘confident’ taxis from Wolverhampton will be BANNED from GM

Taxis licensed by City of Wolverhampton Council could be banned from working in Greater Manchester with a proposed law change.

That’s according to mayor Andy Burnham, who is "confident" more regulation will be brought in to curb the practice of "out-of-area working".

Wolverhampton council has licensed 8,952 cab drivers in Greater Manchester, according to a Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) investigation.

It is thought drivers choose to apply to Wolverhampton council because it is regarded as an easier, quicker and cheaper licensing regime.

But the Midlands council denies this.

However, the practice has left other cabbies feeling angry, with some drivers infuriated by the fact they have to compete with drivers who have "shopped around to get a licence under a less stringent regime".

Since the LDRS published its investigation, rumours have swirled that Wolverhampton council-licensed taxis will be banned from working in Greater Manchester, said one caller to BBC Radio Manchester’s In The Hotseat programme.

The caller, Les, asked the mayor if those rumour were true.

He replied: “It’s not true, I’m afraid. I wish it was true.

“We want the law to be changed as quickly as possible to stop out-of-area working. We do not have that power at the moment.

“We have had Wolverhampton enforcement staff to do spot-checks because we are saying to them, as a council, ‘why are you doing this and where are you?’

“I think that’s forced them to be more present in our area.

"We are hoping we will get [the power] in the English Devolution Bill.

"I am confident it’s coming, the ban on out-of-area working.”

Before the election, the mayor said he had "a firm commitment" from then shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh "that out of area working will be stopped under a Labour government".

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IDFIMH

Quite a statement, I hope he is right.

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IDFIMH

IF such a measure is added and it would take some very careful wording to get it right I can see the right honourable member for wolverhampton tabling an amendment to get it taken out

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

Only MPs who are members of the Privvy Council are reffered to as the right Honorable.

When it comes to taxi/PH licensing there is nothing honourable about Wolverhampton.

Not on your nelly.

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IDFIMH

Which is maybe why Wolverhampton Council now seems to be performing something of a U-turn - it's not as if the CSE issues and the like have just appeared out of nowhere.

The council maybe trying to do it with as little fuss and disruption to the market as possible before someone else does it for them, and trying to save a bit of face as well.

Think it's worth mentioning here that Transport Secretary Louise Haigh is an MP for a Sheffield constituency.

So she will have had first-hand experience of the cross border abuse.

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IDFIMH