Agenda item

The Licensing and Support Services Manager, Worcestershire Regulatory Services (WRS), presented the report to Members. The purpose of the report was to review the mandating of CCTV in taxis.

Members were informed that on 1^st September 2022 Redditch Borough Council had introduced The Statutory taxi and private hire vehicle standards (‘The Standards’). The Standards were published in July 2020 and included the use of CCTV as an area for Local Authority discussion.

The Council already had a voluntary CCTV option in place for all vehicle owners. On introduction of the policy in 2022 Officers had advised that they would monitor intelligence and would engage with partners to ensure that the policy remained in line with what the data was showing us.

The Licensing and Support Services Manager, WRS, highlighted to Members, that as detailed in the report, currently only a small number of licensing authorities (7%) had made it a legal requirement for all taxi and private hire vehicles to be fitted with mandatory CCTV systems. These authorities had been able to demonstrate through evidence and intelligence that such a policy was necessary. More recently these had included Barnsley Council, Portsmouth and Southampton, Cambridge City and South Cambridgeshire District Council. Swindon Borough Council did mandate CCTV but had then reversed the decision due to a number of challenges.

The Council’s current policy which came into effect on 1^st September 2022 was consulted upon and stated that the Council recognised that CCTV systems could act as an additional safeguard, providing protection, confidence and reassurance to the public, when travelling in a hackney carriage or private hire vehicle as well as to drivers, who could also be victims of violence and abuse.

Furthermore the current policy allowed the proprietor of any vehicle, which had been authorised to be used as a hackney carriage or private hire vehicle,  to install CCTV cameras in their vehicle subject to the following requirements:-

·                 No installation of a CCTV system shall take place within a licensed vehicle unless the proprietor of the vehicle has notified the Council in advance.

·                 All CCTV systems which are installed into licensed vehicles must be compliant with the requirements of the Data Protection Act 2018. The system must also be compliant with the Information Commissioner’s requirements in respect of registering the system and the capturing, storing, retaining and using any recorded images.

Officers had assessed the complaints data received by WRS and the context of information received alongside the data from the current WRS Strategic assessment. On evaluation it was evident that the number of complaints received were more directed at driver behaviour or vehicle standards than they were connecting a driver to a serious offence or safeguarding issue such as assault, sexual assault, sexual harassment, or substance misuse.

Members were further informed that the safeguarding training for taxi drivers now included mitigating such situations and covered both drivers’ personal safety and their safeguarding responsibilities.

Officers had a proactive working relationship with West Mercia Police,  Community Safety, and WRS Officers were part of the Multi Agency Targeted Enforcement (MATE) network in all parts of the County. These multi-agency meetings addressed common problem issues and taxi matters were discussed regularly and intelligence analysts also examined their own data and complaints information, and currently there was no evidence that had been presented to Officers whereby a change in the Council’s current CCTV position was necessary.

The Licensing and Support Services Manager, WRS, drew  Members’ attention to paragraph 3.21 (page 13 of the main agenda pack), which stated that:-

“It is important to note that if the Officers in partnership with external agencies felt there was a requirement for mandating CCTV in taxis they would bring the data and evidence to consider without delay to the Licensing Committee in order to proactively safeguard the travelling public.”

Officers had determined that there was currently not a requirement or need for mandatory CCTV in taxis in the Borough. However, Members were reassured that Officers would continue to monitor and periodically review this.

Members debated mandating CCTV, the expense to taxi drivers with installing a CCTV system in their vehicle and the number of licensed drivers in the Borough that had had a  CCTV system installed. Members also commented that CCTV would also protect the drivers as well as their passengers.

The Licensing and Support Services Manager, WRS responded to questions raised during the debate and Members were informed that CCTV in taxis was not for driver safety it was predominantly for passenger safety. The costs to install such a system, which met all of the required industry standards was approximately £500 to £1,200. 

WRS had not been advised that any taxis in the Borough had had CCTV installed in their vehicles. With regard to the fitting of a CCTV system being expensive, Members were informed that, any CCTV system fitted into a licensed vehicle would have to meet industry standards / requirements. Therefore, the Council, not WRS, would have to procure a suitable supplier who met all of these industry standards / regulations.

Members raised further questions on a CCTV system being used, but the driver turning off the system to commit misdemeanours.

The Licensing and Support Services Manager, WRS, reassured Members that should a CCTV system be installed, then the driver would be required to keep the CCTV on when carrying paying passengers.

Members stated that they were surprised that drivers did not want / have CCTV in their licensed vehicles to protect themselves.

The  Licensing and Support Services Manager, WRS, reiterated that as stated earlier during the course of the meeting , that a new element was now included in the mandatory Safeguarding Training for taxi drivers, which included mitigating such situations and covered both drivers’ personal safety and their safeguarding responsibilities. The feedback received from taxi drivers who had attended the Safeguarding Training, since this new element was included, had been very positive.

The Licensing and Support Services Manager, WRS, further suggested that WRS could look to do more communications on how safe it was to be a licensed driver and for passengers of taxis that were licensed by Redditch Borough Council.

Some Members further commented that people used Uber as they were a lot cheaper and younger passengers often felt safer as the vehicle information  was provided to passengers and vehicles could be tracked on the Uber application.

The Council’s Legal Advisor responded to a question on sharing CCTV footage, and in doing so informed Members that, the Council would be the Data Controller for such footage and would need to determine where that data was stored and who would be able to access CCTV footage. CCTV footage would not be made available to a licensed driver / passenger but would be made available to the Police, under the Council’s data sharing protocol. CCTV systems were designed for safeguarding and there was strict governance / protocols and a high standard around the safe storage of CCTV data and the use and sharing of CCTV footage.

As highlighted by the Licensing and Support Services Manager, WRS, there was currently no evidence to mandate CCTV in taxis. Should future evidence show a need to mandate CCTV in taxis, the Council would need to ensure that as the Data Controller all regulations / protocols were met and followed to the high standards required. As the Data Controller there would be a cost implication for the Council.

If a licensed driver wanted to install and use CCTV in their vehicle they would have to notify the Council in order to ensure that they complied with the Councils current voluntary CCTV  policy.

Some Members commented that the thought of CCTV in all taxis in the Borough was an excellent idea. However, with the cost of living crisis and being undercut by Uber, taxi drivers were struggling financially. So if there was currently no evidence to mandate CCTV in taxis, mandating it would not help the taxi trade. Having to purchase an expensive piece of kit would be difficult for the taxi trade.

Councillor A. Fry commented that he regulatory used taxis and that his experience of using taxis and licensed drivers was excellent. The majority of taxi drivers wanted to provide a good service. The main thing was that WRS had highlighted that currently there was no evidence to mandate CCTV in taxis in the Borough, and that we were a long way off from mandating CCTV.

Members asked as to how confident Officers were that the feedback received from the taxi trade was a fair representation.

The Licensing and Support Services Manager, WRS, explained that a number of people were invited to the taxi forum; operators, licensed drivers, Councillors, and that that general consensus was that they did not want to take forward mandating CCTV due to the expensive cost.

On being put to the vote, it was

RESOLVED that

the contents of the report be noted.