Here is a summary of the upcoming Regulatory Committee meeting. The committee will be considering changes to taxi licensing, including new conditions, and will also discuss authorising officers from other councils to undertake compliance functions. Additionally, the committee will review and consider approving proposed increases to various licensing fees and charges.

Taxi Licensing Changes

The Regulatory Committee will be considering the outcome of a consultation on proposed changes to taxi licensing conditions, policy, and guidelines, as detailed in the Outcome of Consultation on Changes to Taxi Licensing Conditions Policy and Guidelines report. These changes touch on several key areas:

• Fitness and Propriety: Proposed changes to the Guidelines on Fitness and Propriety will be discussed.
• Licence Conditions: The committee will consider proposed changes to Private Hire Driver Licence Conditions, Private Hire Vehicle Licence Conditions, Private Hire Vehicle Operator Licence Conditions, and Hackney Carriage Licence Conditions.
• Ultra-Low Emission Vehicles: A new ultra-low emission vehicle policy is up for consideration.
• Hackney Carriages: The proposed removal of internal licence plates in Hackney Carriages is scheduled to be discussed.
• Driver Training: The possibility of allowing driver refresher training to be delivered outside of Wolverhampton is to be discussed.

The report pack includes a summary of the consultation responses in Appendix 1 for Outcome of Consultation on Changes to Taxi Licensing Conditions Policy and Guideline. Some of the key points raised in the consultation responses include requests to set prices for private hire vehicle operators, and to limit the number of private hire licences issued, but the report makes clear that it would be unlawful for the council to implement either of these measures.

The report pack also notes that as agreed at the trade working group, refresher training for drivers will be required every three years, and that if a driver fails to renew their licence within that time, they will be required to undergo training again.

The report pack lists substantial proposed changes following the consultation, including:

• Detailing how those who persistently offend and show a particular disregard for the law will be considered.
• The addition of illegal money lending and money laundering to guideline 5.1.10.
• Any offences which are unlisted elsewhere in the guidelines will be considered under guideline 5.1.22 and a new licence will not normally be granted.
• The inclusion of unlawfully entering a taxi rank or using a vehicle with illegal tyres in guideline 5.1.26.
• Clarification across all licence conditions that overseas police matters need to be reported to Licensing Services.
• Advising all licensees that if they are aware that they have committed an offence overseas, they should seek independent advice to ensure that they provide information to the Licensing Authority that is truthful and accurate.
• Expanding drivers' duty to report from safeguarding concerns to include suspicious packages and any other criminal wrongdoing.
• Requiring drivers to notify Licensing Services if they become the proprietor of a vehicle but the former owner hasn't transferred the vehicle licence to them.
• Requiring drivers to collect passengers punctually from the nearest legally accessible carriageway to the pickup location.
• Prohibiting drivers from using vehicles with 3D/4D/ghost or sticker plates.
• Prohibiting vehicle proprietors from installation the above plates.
• Including the guideline relating to drivers' English standards in licence conditions.
• Duplicating responsibility between proprietors and drivers to ensure that the vehicle does not have anything unauthorised on display.
• Requiring operators to publish information relating to surcharges and changes in quoted prices.
• Specifying the information required from operators when reporting complaints to the licensing authority.
• Requiring directors who are based overseas to notify Licensing Services if they become resident in the UK.
• Removing the requirement for internal licence plates in Hackney Carriages, to mirror Private Hire Vehicles.
• Permitting refresher training to be delivered to existing drivers outside of Wolverhampton, to reduce carbon emissions. As this is as for existing drivers only, it should not serve to attract new applicants.
• As agreed at the Hackney Carriage Trade Working Group, the requirement to replace licensed vehicles with newer models being removed.

The report pack also notes that multiple respondents requested a ULEV review in 2028 instead of 2029, to allow at least 12 months for the trade to prepare for the 2030 implementation. As such, it is proposed that the committee approve that from 1 January 2030, new vehicle licence applications will only be granted to vehicles which are ultra-low emission i.e. emit <75g CO2/km, but that existing licensed vehicles will be granted renewal application past 2030. There will be a review in 2028 of consistency with all other licensing authorities' ULEV policies, with formal consideration by the Regulatory Committee before 31 December 2028 as to whether to rescind extent or proceed with the 1 January 2030 date.

Finally, the report pack notes that the role of Commercial Regulation Manager has been deleted and the relevant delegations have been updated with proposals to authorise the post of 'Head of Taxi Licensing'.

Joint Authorisation of Taxi Compliance Officers

The committee will also discuss a report on the Joint Authorisation of Taxi Compliance Officers. The purpose of this report is to seek approval for authorisation of officers from other licensing authorities to undertake compliance functions under Section 68 and 73 of the Local Government Act (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976¹, as amended. The report pack notes that City of Wolverhampton Council licenses more private hire vehicles and drivers than any other council in the UK, and that 96% of drivers licensed by Wolverhampton live outside the city. It also notes that Section 75 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 makes provisions to permit journeys pre-booked through a private hire vehicle operator to start, drive through and end in any area of the country, regardless of which licensing authority issued their licences, and that this is known as the 'right to roam'.

The report pack refers to a pilot scheme with Milton Keynes City Council, which authorised their officers to undertake some compliance functions in relation to private hire vehicles. During the pilot, 846 roadside checks on vehicles were conducted, of those 91 were Wolverhampton licensed vehicles and using the delegated authority from the pilot two vehicles were suspended.

The report pack proposes that authorisation is granted to officers from:

• Telford & Wrekin Co-operative Council
• Ashfield District Council
• Bassetlaw District Council
• Broxtowe Borough Council
• Gedling Borough Council
• Mansfield District Council
• Newark and Sherwood District Council
• Nottingham City Council
• Rushcliffe Borough Council
• Liverpool City Council
• Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council

Review of Fees and Charges

The Regulatory Committee will also be asked to consider approving increases to fees and charges for general licensing and miscellaneous matters, effective from October 2025. The Review of Fees and Charges for General Licensing and Miscellaneous Matters effective from October 2025 report outlines the proposed changes.

The fees under consideration relate to:

• Acupuncture, tattooing, electrolysis, semi-permanent skin colouring and cosmetic piercing
• Licensed activities Involving Animals
• Sex establishments (shops, cinemas and sexual entertainment venues)
• Highways matters (tables and chairs etc)
• Clean neighbourhoods (distribution of free printed matter)
• The Safety of Sports Grounds Act²
• The Fire Safety and Places of Sports Act³
• Street Trading

The report pack notes that these fees were last reviewed on 10 January 2024, and it was agreed not to implement any charges at that time. The council's constitution outlines that all fees and charges should take into account the full costs of the service in question, including recharges for support services and capital charges, and should also take into account the increase in the estimated costs of the service in question (taken over the forthcoming twelve months). The report pack also notes that Cabinet previously approved that other than in exceptional circumstances, fees and charges will be reviewed and increased to reflect full cost recovery or increased in line with Consumer Price Index (CPI)⁴ where the council is able to do so legally. The proposal is to increase fees by the rate of inflation, with the CPI for September 2025 being 1.7%. Appendix 1 of the report pack provides a comparison of existing and proposed fees. For example, the fee for premises registration for acupuncture, tattooing, electrolysis, semi-permanent skin colouring and cosmetic piercing is proposed to increase from £214.47 to £218.12. The initial fee for a sex establishment (shop or cinema) is proposed to increase from £2,667.50 to £2,712.25. The annual street trading fee for Dudley Street is proposed to increase from £3,380.00 to £3,437.46.

Other Items

The committee will also consider the minutes of the previous meeting and any matters arising, as well as the minutes of the Regulatory Sub-Committee meeting held on 3 June 2025, which considered an application for a new sex establishment licence in respect of The Foxy Lady, 146 Oxford Street, Wolverhampton, WV14 7DW.