I have written to Baroness Vere, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Transport regarding an Early Day Motion tabled recently by Daniel Zeichner MP that I wholly support. We desperately need an overhaul in legislation and regulation in the taxi and private hire industry in order to protect the safety of drivers and passengers.

Much of the legislation and regulation governing the taxi and private hire industry dates back to 1847, and critical elements of these laws are no longer fit for purpose, largely because technology has developed at such a rapid rate in the last 150 years. In a 2018, the Government commissioned an independent working group to look into the law surrounding taxis, and they recommended that reform was seriously needed. They stated that “undue delay would risk public safety”, and yet, in the Government’s recent Queen’s Speech, there is no mention whatsoever of amendments to legislation in this area.

I am deeply concerned that a lack of legislative oversight will continue to put my constituents, both as drivers and as passengers, at a totally avoidable risk. That is why I am calling on the responsible Minister in the Government to act swiftly to protect the public and pass new legislation.