Councils urge retention of police notification scheme for taxi drivers

It is essential that the scheme which sees the police notify licensing authorities of arrests and successful prosecution for serious offences of taxi and PHV drivers remains in place, councils have warned.

In its submission to the Home Office review of Notifiable Occupations, Local Government Regulation said: “The profession of taxi/PHV driving carries special trust and responsibility, in which the public interest in the disclosure of conviction and other information by the police outweighs the normal duty of confidentiality owed to the individual.”

The submission said that local authorities require drivers to routinely undertake criminal record checks, although when exactly this takes place varies from authority to authority. Generally speaking it is undertaken every two to three years when the taxi/PHV licence is renewed.

“This requirement is generally supplemented by a condition that drivers must notify local authorities immediately of any conviction during the duration of a licence,” LG Regulation said. “However, this is often ignored by licence holders who may have a vested interest in non disclosure in order to continue working.”

The organisation warned that without the scheme, it would take a “considerable” amount of time for a licensed driver’s conviction to come to the notice of the local authority – “i.e. up to three years”.

“[This] would significantly put the safety of the traveling public at risk,” it said.

The submission added that the Criminal Record Bureau and Vetting and Barring Schemes, on their own, would not detect arrests and successful prosecutions in sufficient time for local authorities to take action to protect the public.

LG Regulation cited the experience of one local area, where notifications from the police alerted a council of four cases of serious sexual offences over a two-year period.

“In this instance the local authority suspended the drivers pending decision on prosecution,” it said. “If taxi and PHV drivers were removed as occupations from the scheme, or the scheme was scrapped there is every possibility that these drivers would be free to reoffend, and given the nature of the role of a taxi/PHV driver, and vulnerability of many passengers this would cause serious concerns to public safety.”

LG Regulation also called for changes to the current scheme, which relies on the police being able to identify an individual as involved in a relevant occupation.

“It could be improved by making it an offence not to disclose occupation by showing a list of the notifiable occupations in the custody office upon arrest,” the submission said.

The organisation called on the Home Office to consider setting up a central secure database that included police and non-police simple cautions, arrests and prosecutions, arguing that this would ensure information on applicants is up-to-date and accurate. Such a move would also benefit taxi and PHV applicants by speeding up the process.

Arguing that retention of the scheme was necessary and desirable, LG Regulation concluded: “From our feedback from licensing authorities the scheme remains proportionate and the information notified is being disclosed and used for the purpose of protecting the public.”

Philip Hoult