Compulsory CCTV cameras for city's taxis ruled out

A city's taxi drivers will not be made to have CCTV in their cars despite a majority of people backing the idea in a consultation.

Norwich City Council consulted on changes to regulation for taxis and private hire vehicles following the introduction of new laws to improve passenger safety.

Councillors have agreed to tighten rules, including more regular background checks and safeguarding training for drivers.

But while 58% of 230 people responding to a survey supported mandatory cameras in cabs, a regulatory committee meeting agreed they should be optional instead.

Of the other respondents, 22% were against the idea and 20% were "neutral".

A report warned cabbies would face costs of up to £1,000 each for cameras, while the council would face extra costs for administering a scheme.

At the meeting, Green councillor Liam Calvert argued cameras should become standard, given levels of support from the trade and public.

"It keeps drivers safe from false allegations, it makes our job as a licensing authority very considerably easier because when allegations come and we can very quickly check if an incident occurred or not," he said

"There's nothing not to like."

But Labour's Claire Kidman warned CCTV was not "the safety panacea we think it is".

"There was a recent incident in Norwich that happened wholly outside the taxi. The CCTV wouldn't have really made a difference," she added.

And fellow Labour councillor Richard Lawes agreed cameras could "give a false sense of security".

"The sensible position is to allow it to be optional, see how it works in practice with those who do adopt it, and base further consideration on that," he said.

The committee unanimously agreed that CCTV should be optional, with drivers responsible for complying with laws including data protection.

The authority's Labour-run cabinet will have final say on the changes.

Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.