Written question asked by John Pugh (Liberal Democrat) on Friday, 5 October 2007, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 8 October 2007. It was answered by Baroness Winterton of Doncaster (Labour) on Monday, 8 October 2007 on behalf of the Department for Transport.

Taxis: Licensing

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what checks her Department makes on non-British drivers who work with a valid licence as taxi drivers in the UK.

Answer: Local authorities in England and Wales (outside London) and Transport for London (in London) are responsible for licensing taxi drivers.The relevant legislation states that taxi drivers outside London must have held a full GB or EU driver licence for 12 months. In addition, local licensing authorities must satisfy themselves that an applicant for a taxi driver licence is a ““fit and proper”” person to hold such a licence. The way in which they carry out this assessment is a matter for individual authorities.However, the Department has produced Best Practice Guidance to assist local licensing authorities; the guidance includes advice about carrying out background checks on applicants from elsewhere in the EU and other overseas countries and relevant sources of information.

Secondary information