"Stop using Victorian taxi rules" say Trafford Liberal Democrats 

Trafford Liberal Democrats are calling on Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnhan to introduce a new Greater Manchester-wide taxi license amid long standing safety concerns expressed by councillors, residents and taxi drivers.  

The move comes as senior Greater Manchester councillors were told for the first time that taxi licenses issued by Wolverhampton City Council now outnumber those issued by local councils across the city region.  

Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Councillor Will Frass said, "This has been a growing concern for a number of years.  It's quicker and easier to get a taxi license in Wolverhampton and they still allow older vehicles to register.  The problem is that when you get in a taxi with an out of town license, local councils in Greater Manchester don’t know who these drivers are because they are not on our books.  Wolverhampton City Council is too far away to be able to monitor any issues quickly and effectively.  It is not safe or practical."

Councillor Frass said the laws covering taxi licensing were "a mess".  Every council in the country is left to set their own licensing rules and some laws on taxi licensing go back to 1874. 

Councillor Frass said, "While a change at national government level would be welcome, I don't see it coming any time soon.  But we needn't wait around for MPs to fix this mess.  Andy Burnham has a responsibility to act on this and we think he should introduce a Greater Manchester-wide license to tackle safety concerns once and for all.  This is exactly the sort of problem that can be solved by the Greater Manchester councils working together."