The Government has confirmed plans to introduce the most significant reform of taxi and private hire vehicle licensing in decades, with a Draft Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Bill announced as part of the King’s Speech on 13 May 2026.
The proposed legislation, which will be put forward for pre-legislative scrutiny, is designed to replace what ministers describe as an outdated and fragmented licensing framework that no longer reflects how passengers travel, book and use taxi and PHV services today.
A Sector Stuck in the Victorian Era
For decades, taxi and PHV regulation outside London has been rooted in legislation dating all the way back to the Town Police Clauses Act 1847 — rules originally designed for locally operating, horse-drawn vehicles. Incremental reform over the years has produced a complex patchwork of laws, case law and different regimes across Plymouth, London and the rest of England, which is poorly suited to a market now defined by app-based booking and cross-border working.
The Government’s background briefing notes for the King’s Speech were blunt about the scale of the challenge. The Law Commission previously stated that the current framework had become “too extensive in some respects, imposing unnecessary burdens on business and artificially restricting the range of services available to consumers; and insufficiently comprehensive in other ways, undermining the fundamental goal of protecting the travelling public.”
The Local Government Association has also long called for the urgent introduction of a comprehensive Taxi and PHV Licensing Reform Bill to replace the current outdated legislation and make the licensing system fit for the 21st century.
The Numbers Behind the Reform
This is no small corner of the transport sector. According to Government statistics published in 2024, as of 1 April 2024 there were 313,000 licensed vehicles and 381,100 licensed drivers in England, continuing a long-term upward trend.
The briefing notes highlight that 52 per cent of all taxi and public hire vehicle journeys support economic activity, education or essential services — underlining just how much daily life across the country depends on the trade running smoothly and safely.
Who Relies on Taxis and PHVs?
The case for reform is also being made on equality grounds. Taxis and PHVs are disproportionately used by disabled people, women, lower-income households and people without access to a car.
The Government’s figures show:
- People with mobility difficulties make almost 70 per cent more taxi or PHV trips per year compared to those without.
- Women make around 25 per cent more taxi or PHV trips than men.
- People without a car make almost four times as many taxi or PHV trips.
- Households in the lowest income quintile make around 50 per cent more taxi or PHV trips than higher-income households.
The briefing notes also flag that 8 per cent of taxi and PHV journeys in 2024 were for education, with many used for children travelling to school — including those with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).
What the Bill Aims to Do
The Government says the Draft Bill is designed to strengthen public safety, remove barriers for disabled passengers and reflect how people travel today, including via booking apps. The headline measures include:
A single, consistent framework across England — replacing the current patchwork of Victorian-era rules with one set of standards covering licensing, conditions and enforcement.
A national database of licensed vehicles, drivers and PHV operators — expanding and strengthening existing systems to support safeguarding investigations, licensing checks and enforcement activity across local authority boundaries.
Mandatory information sharing between licensing authorities — current legislation does not require it, and safeguarding reviews have repeatedly shown that information silos reduce the ability to identify and respond to risk.
Stronger enforcement powers for regulators — particularly aimed at tackling the long-running issue of cross-border hiring, where drivers licensed in one authority operate extensively in another.
Improved accessibility for disabled passengers, with the Bill aiming to remove practical and legal barriers that still exist today.
The Safeguarding Angle
A significant driver behind the reforms is safeguarding. Major reviews, including those led by Baroness Casey, have identified taxi and PHV licensing as vulnerable to exploitation where oversight is inconsistent and information is not effectively shared.
The Government has been explicit that the Bill is intended to address licensing vulnerabilities which have been exploited by grooming gangs. While enhanced criminal record checks and guidance have improved individual vetting in recent years, the briefing notes acknowledge they do not address wider structural issues, such as effective cross-border enforcement and barriers to intelligence sharing.
Cross-Border Hiring: Still the Elephant in the Room
For drivers and operators across the country, cross-border working remains one of the most contentious issues — and one of the most closely watched parts of the reforms. Current rules allow PHV drivers licensed in one authority to work almost entirely in another, creating long-running tensions between councils, local taxi trades and operators.
The Government has acknowledged that enforcement resources are often misaligned because licensing activity does not always take place where journeys are actually undertaken. The briefing notes that licensing standards and practices currently vary widely between authorities — including differences in fees, conditions, enforcement approaches and decision-making.
Crucially, the briefing also concedes that National Standards alone are unlikely to resolve the full problem. Without a closer match between where licences are issued and where journeys take place, enforcement activity and resources will remain misaligned, limiting effectiveness and undermining public confidence.
What Happens Next?
The Bill will be put through pre-legislative scrutiny, allowing stakeholders across the taxi and PHV sector to provide evidence before the legislation progresses further through Parliament. The Bill will extend to England and Wales but apply only in England.
Transport Committee Chair Ruth Cadbury welcomed the announcement, saying it was encouraging to see the Government taking serious action as the Transport Committee concludes its own inquiry into the licensing of taxis and private hire vehicles.
For drivers, operators and licensing authorities, this is the moment to engage. After nearly 180 years of patched-up Victorian law, the trade finally has a real shot at a modern framework — but the detail, as always, is where it’ll be won or lost.
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Sources:
- The King’s Speech 2026 — Background Briefing Notes (GOV.UK)
- The King’s Speech 2026 — Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street (Parliament)
- King’s Speech: The Key Takeaways — Local Government Chronicle
- King’s Speech 2026: Key Legislation for Local Government — Local Government Lawyer
- Draft Taxi and PHV Bill: King’s Speech Bombshell — Taxi-Point
- King’s Speech Sets Out Plan for Energy Independence Bill — Transport Xtra
