Milton Keynes rapist taxi scandal: Deputy council leader apologises

Liberal Democrat Robin Bradburn was on two committees that allowed serial rapist Nadeem Ahmed Kiani to drive a taxi in Milton Keynes

A newly appointed deputy council leader has apologised for his part in allowing a serial rapist to get a licence to drive a taxi.

Liberal Democrat Robin Bradburn took on the role at Milton Keynes Council after his party and Labour agreed to form a coalition.

Taxi drivers have called for him to resign over his decision to grant Nadeem Ahmed Kiani a licence in 2014.

Mr Bradburn said: "In hindsight I know it was a bad decision."

The council revoked Kiani's licence in 2014 after it was revealed he had been given a private hire licence by the licensing committee in 2011.

A second committee had lifted a suspension on his licence in 2012, despite Thames Valley Police having written to the authority giving more details of Kiani's convictions for raping and assaulting sex workers in London, in 1994.

Councillors Stuart Burke and Gladstone McKenzie resigned from the council's licensing committee as a result.

Mr McKenzie also stood down from the council, while Mr Burke lost his seat at the next election.

Subhan Shafiq, who had vouched for Kiani as a friend in 2011, resigned as mayor and later quit as a councillor.

Mr Bradburn had sat on both committees, but had lost his Bradwell seat in May 2014, three months before the scandal broke.

As he was no longer a councillor, Mr Bradburn avoided much of the scrutiny his colleagues faced.

He was then re-elected in 2015, despite concerns being raised.

Taxi drivers in Milton Keynes said they had lost businesses over the scandal and called for Robin Bradburn to resign as council deputy leader

Mr Bradburn had told a 2014 council investigation into the scandal that "everyone is saying [Kiani] was a risk but he has not done anything in the 14 years since his release".

He added he was "confident the right decisions were made".

Following Conservative gains at May's local election, Labour and the Liberal Democrats formed a coalition administration.

It allowed Labour's Peter Marland to continue as council leader, while Mr Bradburn became his deputy.

At the time of the taxi scandal, Mr Marland had said the decision to grant Kiani a licence had been a "tragedy" and the incident had "damaged the reputation of Milton Keynes".

• Rapist row councillor in election bid

• Rapist taxi scandal a 'tragedy'

• Violent criminals granted taxi licences

Angry taxi drivers told BBC Three Counties Radio Mr Bradburn should not continue as deputy leader.

One said: "Questions should be asked. Why should he be trusted to be deputy leader of the council?"

Another said: "If he thinks it is right to give a licence to a rapist he's living in cuckoo land."

A third added drivers had lost business over the scandal, adding: "We lost our good name because people were thinking taxi drivers are bad."

Mr Bradburn, who admitted he had been aware of Kiani's offences when making the decision, said "the matter has lived in my memory".

Having had seven years to "ponder on this", he said, he had learnt from his mistake.

"The council now has robust, good regulations in place so no other councillors will ever be put in to the position that my colleagues and I were put in to in 2014," he added.