Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)
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Question 96: To ask the Minister for Transport the number of taxi plates that have been issued in each of the past ten years in each local authority here; if there are proposals to limit the number of taxi plates in the future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16997/08]

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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The licensing of small public service vehicles (i.e. taxis, wheelchair accessible taxis, hackneys and limousines) was a function of individual local licensing authorities at the time of liberalisation in November 2000. Taxi licence information from 1999 to 2005 available to my Department is based on statistical returns made by individual local authorities who had declared taximeter areas from time to time. The Commission for Taxi Regulation is now responsible for the licensing of small public service vehicles and, with effect from 25 September 2006, the Commission has replaced the individual local authority taximeter areas with one single national taximeter area. Since the establishment of a national taximeter area, taxi licence statistical data is available from the Commission for Taxi Regulation on the basis of the home address of taxi licence holders.

Having regard to the above position, the following tables reflect the statistical information available to my Department in relation to the number of licensed taxis/wheelchair accessible taxis at various dates between 1999 and 2005. The December 2007 and March 2008 licence statistics were received from the Commission for Taxi Regulation and are based on the home address of licence holders.

Insofar as limits on taxi licence numbers are concerned, the October 2000 High Court judgement which led to taxi liberalisation created the legal position that limitation of taxi licences in the interests of existing licence holders could not be sustained. Regulations made in November 2000 responded to the new legal situation established by reference to the decision of the High Court. Subsequently, the Taxi Regulation Act 2003, which provides the legislative basis for the licensing and operation of small public service vehicles generally, does not provide a basis for the application of quantitative controls on the issue of licences for any such vehicles.

The Commission for Taxi Regulation is now the independent public body responsible for the development and maintenance of the regulatory framework for the control and operation, including licensing, of taxis, hackneys, limousines and their drivers. However, the Commission does not have any remit or statutory power under the Taxi Regulation Act 2003 in relation to the control of the number of licences issued. The Commission is, however, progressing policy and supporting regulation in relation to such aspects within its statutory control as vehicle standards and driver skills and knowledge. This will contribute to enhancing the overall standards that a small public service vehicle operator must meet to obtain either a small public service vehicle driver or vehicle licence.