Northern Ireland for Infrastructure, Minister John O'Dowd, has confirmed that there are no plans to review taxi legislation in Northern Ireland.

In a recent exchange in the Northern Ireland Assembly, Mark Durkan, Social Democratic and Labour Party, asked the Minister "for his assessment of the suitability and effectiveness of existing taxi legislation and to state whether he has any plans to review it."

In response, the Minister said:

"Taxi legislation and the challenges that face our taxi industry have been raised with me many times. My view is that the main challenge that faces our taxi industry is not the current taxi legislation but the different economic factors that have come into play as people's habits have changed since COVID, their spending limits have been reduced as a result of the cost-of-living crisis and different employment opportunities have arisen for those who normally drive taxis. There is a range of issues. To date, I have not committed to reviewing taxi legislation, as resources and personnel in my Department will not allow me to do so. I have to prioritise other matters. I am committed to working alongside the taxi industry and taxi drivers to do what I can, but if I am going to do something, I want to make sure that it will be an effective response to their needs."

Pressing him further on the question, Mr Durkan asked if there was a desire to review the legislation on the basis that it was outdated.

In response, the Minister said:

"So, how do we support our taxi industry? How does our legislature support our taxi industry? I am open to engaging with the taxi industry. In fact, rather than having a constant conversation about reviewing the legislation and about what one of my colleagues committed to eight years ago, I am writing to the Department for Transport in England to ask it not to proceed with the VAT increases on taxi fares and taxi operators, because that will have the most devastating impact on taxi operators."