Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has announced plans to tackle out-of-area taxis operating in the region.
Speaking at the Transport for Greater Manchester headquarters Burnham set out aims to “fix a broken system”, and gain greater control over local taxi licensing, with long-term plans to reform national legislation.
Measures include local engagement with drivers and authorities to understand why taxis aren’t obtaining licences in Greater Manchester, unifying the area’s 10 councils to streamline operations, and lobbying for a change of the Deregulation Act 2015 which is stopping councils from enforcing taxis to licence in the area they operate.
Burnham said: “Parties of the political right say that this is the answer, deregulate everything and the market solves everything and it’s all going to be wonderful.
“It isn’t, you often end up with the public interest being undermined by the private interest, and you end up with the worst public service at the end of it.
“This is another example of exactly what happens when you deregulate essential services – you often end up with something worse at the end of it, rather than something better.”
The mayor stressed that the lack of control on local licensing has an impact on public safety and standards, with local authorities having not vetted almost half of private hire drivers currently operating, and creating friction both within the trade and between taxis and councils.
Greater Manchester Police also raised concerns that more hurdles were in place when pursuing issues relating to out-of-area taxis, having to liaise with out-of-area councils with which they don’t have direct lines.
Burnham added: “It just stands to reason — you can’t enforce from 100 miles away as well as you can enforce right here in Greater Manchester.”
Figures show 49% of private hire drivers operating in Greater Manchester are licensed elsewhere.
And while Burnham was initially reluctant to direct blame onto just Wolverhampton Council, about whom he’s been historically critical with taxi licensing measures, there was still concern.
He said: “There’s one local authority now licensing more than 10% of all taxis in England. How on earth does that get you the highest standards of public safety?”
He suggested that Wolverhampton council were subcontracting employees to grant licences to keep up with demand.
“It’s not clear who’s actually doing the job,” he said.
The mayor has been consistently critical of this council since concerns about out-of-area licensing was first raised in 2023.
In August 2023, he told BBC Radio Manchester: “How are they not checking up on those taxis and those drivers, but they’re taking in the money for it?
“They shouldn’t be doing it because they’re giving plates without being able to then monitor the performance.”
Reports in 2023 showed almost 9,000 private hire taxi drivers residing in Greater Manchester were registered with Wolverhampton Council, with drivers regarding their licensing process as easier, quicker and cheaper.
Wolverhampton council has denied this, while hiring extra staff to keep up with the high demand of applications.
Burnham, alongside Councillor Eamonn O’Brien, Leader of Bury Council and clean air lead for Greater Manchester, reiterated plans to financially support the taxi fleet to adapt to the area’s clean air plans.
They announced £8 million in government-funded grants to Hackney carriages, capped at £12.5k per driver, and council-funded £1k grants or £5k interest-free loans to private hire vehicles to update their vehicles to comply with clean air plans.
The former Leigh MP has put a huge focus on transport since becoming Mayor in 2017.
Under Burnham’s leadership, Greater Manchester launched the Bee Network, integrating bus and tram systems under local control, a first in England since deregulation 40 years prior.
Since, he has kept fares capped at £2 with a new tap-in tap-out system rolled out in March this year, and has also announced plans to bring local rail into the Bee Network, with the first plan to be delivered by December 2026.
Main image by Sally McLennan
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