The following question was submitted by Mr D Bamping –

Question: Does Plymouth City Council have a published policy for putting people on Specific Point of Contact (SPoC) with the Council?  If not; then can the council confirm that it is not able to put anyone on a SPoC as it would be unlawful without a written policy?

Answer: The Council does not have a published Single Point of Contact policy, and I am advised that there is no legal requirement for the Council to have such a policy.? Each case of potentially excessive, malicious or vexatious communication with Councillors and/or officers is considered in the light of guidance from the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman on managing unreasonable complaint behaviour.? The Council has, however, undertaken to review and implement a Single Point of Contact policy in due course.

The following question was submitted by Mr C R Wildman -

Question: Regarding the Taxi Policy. Consultation was the only input allowed, and ignored. Licensing Office Report appeared to be unread, simply accepted. Trades and Travelling Public need proper input to decision makers before adoption.

Consultation was broadly against.??Democracy? It was a pointless paper exercise. Can PCC reconsider the Policy?

Answer: There was pre-consultation with the PLTA and members of the taxi trade and a number of private hire operators. This was followed by a 12-week consultation and the feedback questionnaire was made available online to encourage more people to respond.  A total of 338 responses were received, which is much higher than the last Taxi Policy Consultation, which resulted in 95 responses. The consultation responses were reviewed and the Policy updated accordingly.  The consultation responses and considerations are included in the City Council report dated 21 March 2022. The Policy and consultation was also reviewed by Members at the Scrutiny Committee on 15 March 2022.   

The following question was submitted by Mr R Hamilton -

Question: Trade Representatives and Licensees should be able to speak to, and answer questions from, Councillors at Committee. Regarding taking Taxi payment by Card, common issues are no signal, incompatible phone, insufficient funds, card declined, PIN Number not known and bank system inoperative. Will PCC Reconsider the mandatory requirement?

Answer: It is at the discretion of the Chair of any committee to invite members of the public or other representative to speak at committee on any particular agenda item. A scrutiny review of the implementation of the Taxi Policy is planned and the Chair of that session would make appropriate invitations to witnesses. Officers have spoken to a number of taxi and private hire drivers who have no issues with taking card payments. A large number of vehicles already have card payment readers fitted to their vehicles and have had these in place for a number of years. This not only assists passengers to ensure they can get home safely but is also safer for the drivers as they do not have to carry large amounts of cash. Any costs associated with the card readers can be claimed as a business expense. We have been advised that some card readers provide better coverage than others, so it is important to research the products that are available to ensure the best coverage is obtained.

The following question was submitted by Mr S Smale -

Question: The taxi policy is driving people out of the trades. Anybody who carries on trading will license from other Councils (see York). Policy is ridiculous, overpriced, unworkable, removes income from trade. 42 years in, I’ll be switching.  Do PCC wish to cease delivering Taxi and Private Hire licensing?

Answer: : I am sorry that you feel that the Policy is ridiculous.  The matter of ‘overpriced’ would be something which is dealt with by the Fees review which occurs each year and is set by the Taxi Licensing Committee.  The fee for each licence must cover the costs of administration and enforcement and the fees have not been increased for the last two years.  

Whilst we appreciate that there will be some loss of income to some drivers from work such as funerals, weddings and advertising, Members considered that introducing a livery would provide a number of positive benefits.  Other Councils have found that it increases trade as liveried vehicles are easily recognised by the customer, gave improved customer confidence and led to other vehicle proprietors getting their livery earlier than required.

The following question was submitted by Mr B Rogers -

Question: What evidence is there to suggest that the colour of a wheelchair accessible taxi, as stipulated in the adopted taxi policy (white and green), encourages women to be safer, given that private hire vehicles in the City can be any colour, size and shape stipulating the words ‘taxi’ or ‘cab’?

Answer: As detailed in the City Council Taxi licensing Report heard at Full council on 21 March, the white and green design is bright and easily identifiable and it is hoped this would improve customer safety especially in the evening and night-time economy.

When our last unmet need survey was undertaken 63% of respondents said they would prefer to see the hackney carriage fleet have a livery and 65% of respondents said they felt a livery would help to improve public safety using hackney carriages.

The livery will therefore enhance public safety and security as customers can be confident that the taxi is properly licensed and meets the necessary safety standards especially vulnerable clients transported at night.

The following question was submitted by Mrs C Beaumont -

Question: 243 Taxi and Private Hire Drivers have left the two trades since 2020; how many drivers do we have to lose for the Taxi and Private Hire Policy 2022 to be scrapped?

Answer: The loss of taxi and private hire drivers is unfortunately a national problem. The Taxi Policy 2022 has encouraged drivers to return to the trade by including a three-year return period without having to complete the Knowledge of Plymouth Test.

The limit on the numbers of Hackney Carriages has been removed to allow free entry to the market and it is hoped this may also reduce the rental costs of vehicles.

The majority of changes included in the Policy have been to ensure we meet the requirements of the Department for Transport Statutory Guidance.

All councils will be reviewing their Emissions Policies to ensure they strive towards the Government’s Climate and Emergency Action Plan.

We have listened to the feedback from the consultation and vehicle proprietors have eight years until they are required to meet the Ultra-low emissions standards.

The following question was submitted by Mr M Leaves -

Question: Licensees earn additional income through advertising, funerals and weddings. PCC livery policy is depriving Licensees of this income and discriminating against wheelchair using disabled persons contrary to PCC Equality and Diversity Policy. A Growth and Infrastructure Committee is planned, will Licensee Representatives be granted full attending participation?

Answer: We understand that this will have an impact on this type of income, however after careful consideration the livery was introduced for the positive benefits it will achieve.

The white and green design is bright and easily identifiable and it is hoped this would improve customer safety especially in the evening and night-time economy. A liveried fleet assists members of the public to identify a hackney carriage that can be flagged anywhere and they know that they have a proper cab and not someone posing as a cab driver. The Council’s CCTV department have also advised that at night, a clear defined taxi colour such as the white and green proposed, will help with identification, and will support clearer CCTV images.

The livery will therefore enhance public safety and security as customers can be confident that the taxi is properly licensed and meets the necessary safety standards especially vulnerable clients transported at night.

It professionalises the service and other councils have found that it increases trade as the newly liveried taxis were easily recognised by the customer, improved customer confidence and led to other vehicle proprietors getting their livery earlier than required.

We have a 100% wheelchair accessible Hackney Carriage fleet to ensure we do not discriminate against disabled persons. The Taxi Policy will be reviewed by scrutiny post implementation; members of the trade will be invited to take part in that session when it is scheduled.

The following question was submitted by Mrs Wildman -

Question: The argument that Livery aids CCTV identification is farcical. To identify Private Hire Vehicles it may be needed, but Taxis are easy to differentiate. Can the requirement for on Licenced Hackney Carriages be re-evaluated?

Answer: The white and green design is bright and easily identifiable and it is hoped this would improve customer safety especially in the evening and night-time economy.  A liveried fleet assists members of the public to identify a hackney carriage that can be flagged anywhere and they know that they have a proper cab and not someone posing as a cab driver.  The Council’s CCTV department have also advised that at night, a clear defined taxi colour such as the white and green proposed, will help with identification, and will support clearer CCTV images.

The livery will therefore enhance public safety and security as customers can be confident that the taxi is properly licensed and meets the necessary safety standards especially vulnerable clients transported at night. It professionalises the service and other councils have found that it increases trade as they were easily recognised by the customer, improved customer confidence and led to other vehicle proprietors getting their livery earlier than required.