Taxi Driver Online

Middlesbrough taxi driver urges Government to change laws regarding drivers following grooming report


Middlesbrough Taxi driver Mr Rasub Afzal (front) is running a petition urging the government to change it's laws so that minibus drivers, like taxi drivers, have CRB checks

A taxi driver who set up a petition for tighter controls of minibus drivers has renewed calls for more checks following the revelation that children as young as 11 are being groomed in Middlesbrough.

Rasub Afzal, from Middlesbrough, has spent months urging the Government to change its legislation so that minibus drivers - like taxi drivers - have DBS (formerly CRB) checks before they are given their licence.

The 46-year-old dad enlisted the help of Middlesbrough MP Andy McDonald to help with his battle to pass on his petition to Parliament.

The Labour MP confirmed he was working with Mr Afzal and had written to then Transport Minister Norman Baker but had not received a favourable response.

“The Minister said that while he wasn’t saying that there wasn’t any risk at all, he felt the risk was low and that the current regime was adequate,” he said.

But Mr Afzal said although minibuses could carry more people “there are times when there is only the driver and the last drop off”.

Mr McDonald has also written to Mr Baker’s predecessor Baroness Susan Kramer.

“Sadly I received much the same response namely that the Government would not be changing its position on Enhanced CRB checks for PCV drivers,” he said.

“With the benefit of the excellent piece of work done by the council this week, I will raise this issue again in the House at the earliest opportunity.”

source: http://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/teess ... nt-7918063

_________________
Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

_________________
Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

_________________
IDFIMH

Most councils insist that pcv drivers on their contracts have CRB or whatever-they're-called-this -week checks. The voluntary sector don't face such challenges.

Drive for minibus licence loophole to be closed to protect children at risk of sexual exploitation



THE largest taxi firm on Teesside has written to Transport Minister Baroness Kramer calling for a legal loophole to be closed which could put vulnerable children at risk of sexual exploitation.

Boro Taxis has raised concerns about the lack of scrutiny for drivers employed by private hire firms to drive mini buses with more than eight seats.

Unlike private hire drivers, mini bus drivers are not obliged to undergo a criminal check via the Disclosure and Debarring Service (DBS).

Middlesbrough MP, Andy McDonald has already taken up the cause on behalf of a concerned local self-employed taxi driver, and Middlesbrough Council recommended the law should be changed in its ‘Protecting children from sexual exploitation’ report produced last month.

Christine Bell, company secretary of Boro Taxis, said: “The contention is that the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) do not carry out a DBS check as part of the application process for mini bus drivers and the applicant should declare their offences but if they don’t, nobody is any the wiser.

“The DBS helps employers and taxi licensing authorities make safer recruitment decisions and prevent unsuitable people from working with vulnerable groups, including children.

“The simplest way for this loophole to be closed would be for the licensing of private hire vehicles from four to eight seats, licensed by local authorities, to be extended to 17 seats.

This would then mean that the driver of those vehicles would also be licensed by local authorities and therefore subject to a DBS check,” she added.

Mr McDonald contacted the previous transport minister, Norman Baker, on behalf of self-employed cabbie, Rasub Afzal, but was told the risk of harm was low and the existing system was adequate.

“Sadly, I received much the same from the new minister Susan Kramer, namely that the Government would not be changing its position on Enhanced CRB checks for PCV drivers," he explained last night.

“I continue to support the view that the Government should change its position on this issue and I will raise this again in the House at the earliest opportunity."

Middlesbrough Council is also lobbying for the loophole to be tightened after looking at ways vulnerable children at risk of sexual exploitation can be better protected.

Its report concluded: “The panel found that if there was any reference made to when a child is found to be groomed in a taxi, then the taxi driver’s licence is suspended by the council’s licensing department.

"However, due to different legislation this would not prevent the taxi driver from then applying for a PSV licence and legitimately driving a minibus which is licensed under the DVSA, the application for a PSV licence does not currently require drivers to undergo a DBS check, effectively the driver could continue their contact with children.

The panel considered the legislation and control should be revised and representation made to Government regarding this.”

source: http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/1 ... loitation/

_________________
Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

Anyone driving a minibus on a school contract here must have been DBS checked by the County Council.

_________________
Grandad,

As the majority of the British public have licences to drive minibuses (not for hire and reward), the cost would be enormous.