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WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR TRANSPORT AND TECHNICAL SERVICES BY DEPUTY S.Y. MÉZEC OF ST. HELIER
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 23rd JUNE 2015
Question
Could the Minister outline what progress, if any, has been made since the Taxi Regulation Review last year and detail what further work needs to be done?
Answer
Since the beginning of the year both the Assistant Minister and I have put a great deal of effort into researching into taxis, speaking with the main industry representatives and going out day and late-night to meet drivers and their customers.
I can confirm that my views on taxi regulatory policy and how it should be developed are now well formed. There has been a lot of uncertainty during the review for drivers and continued interest from the travelling public. So, I am looking forward to making public how I intend to improve and modernise the service.
However, I also recognise that many livelihoods rely on the taxi service, as well as the social, economic and leisure benefits that come from maintaining a stable cost effective and efficient service. Therefore, before I make any public announcement I have asked my officers to undertake some final research and technical development.
The areas being developed at a high-level are:
- Service Enhancements including matters such as: Driver Fitness, Driver Training, Industry Branding, Access for People with Disability, Driver Discipline and Complaint Procedures.
- Tariff Transparency including matters such as: Tariff Structures, Tariff Setting, Customer Information, Meter Requirements and Company Regulatory Requirements.
- Regulatory Reform including issues such as: Classes of Taxi-cab, Operating Restrictions and Quantitive Regulation.
As part of their due diligence work I have also asked officers to ensure that the necessary legislative articles are in place to allow my intended changes to be implemented and identify if and where new regulatory powers may be required, this work has started and is ongoing.
Furthermore, a significant amount of work will be required at a detailed technical level to actually implement the changes. This work has started and is being progressed within the necessarily and increasingly limited resources available.
I anticipate that the high-level work will be completed late July and I will be ready to announce my intentions at that point.