Taxi drivers 'apprehensive' about vehicle CCTV vote

Taxi drivers would have up to 18 months to install CCTV cameras in the vehicles

Taxi drivers were apprehensive ahead of a council vote on the introduction of CCTV in their vehicles, a federation said.

In September, Peterborough City Council's licensing committee voted to make cameras mandatory in all taxis for the safety of passengers and drivers.

Ali Haider from the Peterborough Taxi Hire Federation, called it an "intrusion of privacy" that would cause "a financial burden" to drivers.

The final decision was recommended to be put to a full council vote, which is due to take place on Wednesday.

More than 100 operators and 1,800 taxi drivers across Peterborough would have to implement the rules within18 months.

The policy was first recommended in 2022 and the council subsequently carried out a consultation between November last year and February.

It received more than 600 responses, including 288 from people in the trade.

Ali Haider and Nawab Khan both said the decision had left taxi drivers angry

Concerns raised by taxi drivers included the cost of installing CCTV and fears it could "undermine client confidentiality".

Other responses were more positive, including passengers who said they felt "vulnerable" in taxis.

Peterborough Private Hire Association chairman Nawab Khan said: "We are happy with the voluntary take-up of the CCTV but are against the mandatory rule.

"If it was introduced nationally we would oblige but find it unfair that only Peterborough is being made to follow this rule.

"They [taxi drivers] are apprehensive about what will happen.

"But they are looking at other options or maybe moving to another licensing authority that doesn't operate the CCTV rule if it goes ahead."