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Fewer cab drivers face criminal counts
The number of taxi drivers charged with criminal offences almost halved last year, but nearly 50 per cent of those facing allegations and convictions were allowed to keep driving a cab.
Department of Transport figures show that the 51 taxi drivers charged last year was a 45 per cent decrease from the 93 cabbies who faced criminal charges in 2013 and represented 0.04 per cent of WA’s the nearly 11,000 licensed cabbies.
But 24 of those charged with offences which included allegations relating to drugs, assault, damage and weapons were allowed to stay in their jobs as taxi drivers after the department decided not to suspend or cancel their taxi driver’s licences.
Of the cab drivers not removed from the industry, two had charges withdrawn by police and 12 were granted spent conviction orders by a court, which means the offences cannot be taken into account by the department.
In the remaining 12 cases, the department decided there were insufficient grounds for action.
Four drivers charged with offences allegedly committed on the job, including unlawful damage, stealing and creating a false belief, did not have their licences cancelled or suspended because of their lack of criminal records, the nature of the behaviour and spent convictions.
Two taxi drivers charged with the most serious offences of sex assaults allegedly committed while on the job had their licences suspended immediately.
Other drivers who had their right to work revoked faced charges that related to firearms, assault, arson, indecent assault, stealing, fraud, firearms and drug dealing.
The statistics do not include taxi drivers charged with traffic offences.
Department general manager of passenger services Aaron de Rozario said the Government had been working closely with the taxi sector over the past four years to improve service and clean up the industry.
Mr de Rozario said the Taxi Driver Licensing Act, which will be put into effect with a taxi driver penalty point system after a six-month transition this year, would improve driver entry standards and make more serious crimes classified as “disqualification offences”.
Transport Minister Dean Nalder said the department was drafting a green paper on the future of the taxi industry that would lead to changes which should provide a higher quality service.
Shadow transport minister Ken Travers said the decrease in taxi drivers facing criminal charges was positive, but the number remained too high and the Government’s decision to end psychological screening of potential drivers was having a detrimental effect on the public.
The statistics do not include taxi drivers charged with traffic offences
Four cab drivers charged with offences allegedly committed on the job, including unlawful damage, stealing and creating a false belief, did not have their licences cancelled or suspended because of their lack of criminal records, the nature of the behaviour and spent convictions.
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