March 28, 2007
Foreign taxi drivers must take test in English
By Kate Martin
FOREIGNERS wanting to be taxi drivers in Basingstoke will have to take tests in English under new rules agreed by the borough council.
An increase in applicants from overseas and outside the borough has led licensing chiefs to introduce new tests.
From April 1, all new applicants for private hire and hackney carriage licences will have to take a driving test in a taxi and complete tests to assess their knowledge of the English language and currency, The Highway Code and local geography.
Any drivers who were born, or have spent a large amount of time, outside the UK will now be required to register or convert their licences with the DVLA to check their driving history.
My firm belief is that if we cannot get a criminal history out of someone, we should not be giving them a licence
Linda Cannon
Foreigners will also have to provide a statement of good conduct from their embassy to check their criminal history in the same way that UK taxi drivers undergo Criminal Records Bureau checks.
Council bosses hope the new conditions will create a level playing field for all drivers and ensure public safety and customer satisfaction. Working taxi drivers who are the subject of serious complaints about their driving may also have to take a driving test.
A report to a meeting of the borough's licensing committee on Tuesday, March 20, said one private hire driver had his licence revoked after three months because of complaints about his dangerous driving and "poor geographical knowledge of the area".
The committee approved the plans, but concerns were raised about the reliability of some of the checks from foreign embassies.
Linda Cannon, the council's licensing manager, said: "There will be some discrepancies from one embassy to another, which we cannot control. My firm belief is that if we cannot get a criminal history out of someone, we should not be giving them a licence."
Members of the Basingstoke Hackney Carriage Federation welcomed the plans but warned the committee that some of the new test regulations may not work in practice.
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