AQW 54694/11-16

Ms Claire Sugden
Independent
East Londonderry

Tabled Date: 23/02/2016
Answered On Date: 15/03/2016
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of the Environment for his assessment of the impact that the Taxis Act (NI) 2008 will have on wedding car companies.

Answer:

The Taxis Act (the Act) came into force in April 2008, following the passage of the Taxis Bill through the Assembly legislative process and was subsequently passed by the Assembly unopposed. This was a continuation of wedding cars being regulated under the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981, which already required the vehicles and drivers to be licensed. The key rationale for the sector being regulated is because wedding cars are vehicles which carry passengers for hire or reward in the course of their business, as do taxis. I accept that due to the nature of the wedding car industry the frequency of carrying passengers for hire and reward is less than that of a traditional taxi. However the safety of passengers is no less important than a customer in a taxi and for that reason it was decided they should be included in the Taxis Act, a decision endorsed by the Environment Committee during the Committee stage of the Bill.

In terms of impact, cars used solely for weddings are exempt from Taxi Operator Licensing. Drivers are exempt from wearing taxi driver badges. Vehicles are exempt from taxi metering, roof signs and external taxi licence plates. Further, the new Taxi Licence Regulations mean that there are many more types of vehicles which can be used as wedding cars, as under the old regime you could not use a 2 door or soft top (convertible) vehicle as a wedding car. This is an issue the wedding car industry has been raising with the Department for many years and I am glad to be able to finally resolve it.

From a legislative perspective my Department has done all it can, within the scope of the existing primary legislation. Removing wedding cars from the Taxis Act will require consultation and a Primary legislative amendment. The Act does not include powers to make exemptions from either taxi vehicle or driver licensing requirements.

I met with representatives from the Wedding Car industry recently and they expressed concerns about the current arrangements which they see as too onerous and disproportionate for their industry. In particular I have listened to their concerns around new drivers to the industry that they feel have been adversely impacted by the new Taxi Driver Licence Regulations. I have asked my officials to look at how we can provide assistance and reassurance to the industry as they transition from the current regime to the new regime coming into force in May 2016. I also indicated that in line with the full implementation of all Primary legislation the Taxis Act will be subject to review and I would expect that the new Minister of the Department for Infrastructure would instigate this process as quickly as possible in the next Assembly mandate. As part of this review I would expect to see consultation on whether wedding cars should remain within the scope of the legislation or removed and licensed in a more proportionate way.

In terms of engagement with the sector, the consultations undertaken 2005 and 2006 (the topic was The Regulation of Taxis and Private Hire Vehicles 2005) were responded to by some wedding car operators. At that time it was argued by those respondents that the Department should do more to recognise the needs of wedding car providers and to prosecute the many unlicensed operators in this sector. This position was also expressed during the 13 week Consideration Stage of the Taxis Bill to the Environment Committee. Since that time I and my officials have had a number of meetings with representatives of the Wedding Car Industry to listen to their concerns and on occasions they have been accompanied by elected representatives.

The Department has also consulted on a series of issues including taxi licensing, special occasion and novelty vehicles and taxi operator licensing during which all taxi drivers and operators were asked for their views on how the Department were implementing the Act.