Taxi Regulation Act 2003

PART 1 Preliminary and General

1 Short title.

1.—This Act may be cited as the Taxi Regulation Act 2003.

2 Interpretation.

2.—(1) In this Act, except where the context otherwise requires—

“Act of 1961” means the Road Traffic Act 1961;

“Act of 2002” means the Road Traffic Act 2002;

“appointed stand” has the meaning assigned to it by section 84(1) (inserted by section 15 of the Act of 2002) of the Act of 1961;

“authorised person” has the meaning assigned to it by section 49;

“civil service” has the meaning assigned to it by the Civil Service Regulation Act 1956;

“Commission” means the Commission for Taxi Regulation;

“Commissioner” means a member of the Commission;

“Council” means the Advisory Council to the Commission;

“driver number” means the number of a driving licence granted under Part III of the Act of 1961;

“driving licence” has the meaning assigned to it by section 22 of the Act of 1961;

“establishment day” means the day appointed under section 5 to be the establishment day for the purposes of Part 2;

“Garda Commissioner” means the Commissioner of the Garda Síochána;

“grant” in relation to a licence, includes the renewal, transfer or continuance in force of the licence;

“licence” means a licence in respect of a small public service vehicle or a licence to drive a small public service vehicle granted, as the case may be, under section 34 of this Act or section 82 of the Act of 1961;

“licensing authority” means a person entitled to grant licences in respect of small public service vehicles or their drivers or both under regulations made under section 34 of this Act or under section 82 of the Act of 1961;

“local authority” means—

(a) other than in sections 17, 18 and 20, a county council, a city council or a town council (within the meaning of the Local Government Act 2001) other than the council of a town mentioned in Part 2 of Schedule 6 of that Act, and

(b) in sections 17, 18 and 20, a county council, a city council or a town council (within the meaning of that Act);

“mechanically propelled vehicle” has the meaning assigned to it by section 3 of the Act of 1961;

“Minister” means the Minister for Transport;

“Ministerial directions” means directions under section 10;

“register of licences” means a register established under section 38;

“Regulations of 1995” means the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) (Amendment) Regulations 1995 (S.I. No. 136 of 1995);

“small public service vehicle” has the meaning assigned to it by section 3 of the Act of 1961;

“statutory body” means—

(a) a Minister of the Government,

(b) the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland,

(c) a local authority (within the meaning of the Local Government Act 2001),

(d) the Garda Commissioner or a member of the Garda Síochána duly authorised by the Garda Commissioner,

(e) a body established by or under statute,

(f) a company in which all the shares are held by, or on behalf of, or by directors appointed by a Minister of the Government, or

(g) a company in which all the shares are held by a body referred to in paragraph (e) or a company referred to in paragraph (f);

“superannuation benefits” means pension, gratuities and other allowances payable on resignation, retirement or death;

“taxi” means a street service vehicle (within the meaning of section 3 of the Act of 1961);

“taximeter area” means an area declared to be or deemed to be a taximeter area under section 41.

(2) In this Act—

(a) a reference to a section or Part is a reference to a section or Part of this Act, unless it is indicated that a reference to some other enactment is intended,

(b) a reference to a subsection or paragraph is a reference to a subsection or paragraph of the provision in which the reference occurs, unless it is indicated that reference to some other provision is intended, and

(c) a reference to any enactment or instrument made under statute shall be construed as a reference to that enactment or instrument as amended, adapted or extended by or under any subsequent enactment or instrument made under statute including this Act.

3 Laying of regulations and orders before Houses of Oireachtas.

3.—(1) Every order (other than an order under section 5 or section 33) or regulation made under this Act shall be laid before each of the Houses of the Oireachtas as soon as practicable after it is made.

(2) Either House of the Oireachtas may, by resolution passed within 21 sitting days after the day on which an order or a regulation was laid before it in accordance with subsection (1), annul the order or regulation.

(3) The annulment of an order or regulation under this section takes effect immediately on the passing of the resolution concerned, but does not affect anything that was done under the order or regulation before the passing of the resolution.

4 Expenses.

4.—The expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

PART 2 Commission for Taxi Regulation

5 Establishment day.

5.—The Minister shall by order appoint a day to be the establishment day for the purposes of this Part.

6 Establishment of Commission for Taxi Regulation.

6.—(1) There stands established, on the establishment day, a body to be known as the Commission for Taxi Regulation or, in the Irish language, An Coimisiún um Rialáil Tacsaithe, in this Act referred to as the “Commission”, to perform the functions assigned to it by or under this Act.

(2) The Commission shall be a body corporate with perpetual succession and a seal and power—

(a) to sue and be sued in its corporate name,

(b) to acquire, hold and dispose of land or an interest in land, and

(c) to acquire, hold and dispose of any other property.

(3) The Commission shall have all such powers as are necessary for or incidental to the performance of its functions under this Act.

7 Seal of Commission.

7.—(1) The Commission shall, as soon as may be after its establishment, provide itself with a seal.

(2) The seal shall be authenticated by the signature of—

(a) a Commissioner, or

(b) a member of the staff of the Commission, authorised by the Commission to act in that behalf.

(3) Judicial notice shall be taken of the seal of the Commission and every document—

(a) purporting to be an instrument made by and to be sealed with the seal of the Commission, and

(b) purporting to be authenticated in accordance with subsection (2),

shall be received in evidence and be deemed to be such instrument without proof unless the contrary is shown.

8 Independence of Commission.

8.—Subject to this Act, the Commission shall be independent in the exercise of its functions.

9 Principal function and objectives of Commission.

9.—(1) The principal function of the Commission is the development and maintenance of a regulatory framework for the control and operation of small public service vehicles and their drivers.

(2) In exercising its function, the Commission shall seek to achieve the following objectives—

(a) to promote the provision and maintenance of quality services by small public service vehicles and their drivers,

(b) to pursue the continued development of a qualitative and customer orientated licensing system, regulatory code and standards for small public service vehicles, small public service vehicle licence holders and small public service vehicle drivers,

(c) to oversee the development of a professional, safe, efficient and customer-friendly service by small public service vehicles and their drivers,

(d) to encourage and promote competition in relation to services (including fares) offered by small public service vehicles,

(e) in seeking to achieve the provision of quality services by small public service vehicles and their drivers, to have due regard to the protection of service users and providers alike,

(f) to promote measures to facilitate increased integration of taxi services in the public transport system,

(g) to promote the development of high quality cost effective services by small public service vehicles and their drivers which meet a wide range of customer needs including those of passengers with mobility or sensory impairments,

(h) to promote access to small public service vehicles by persons with disabilities,

(i) to encourage investment to support and enhance the services offered by small public service vehicles and to promote innovation in this regard.

(3) The exercise of functions of the Commission under this Act may be carried out by or through any member of the staff of the Commission or a person authorised by the Commission, as the Commission deems appropriate.

10 Policy directions.

10.—(1) The Minister may give such general policy directions to the Commission in relation to small public service vehicles and their drivers as he or she considers appropriate to be followed by the Commission in the exercise of its functions.

(2) The Commission shall comply with any directions given under subsection (1).

(3) Where the Minister gives a direction under subsection (1) a notice of the giving of the direction and details of it (including reasons for giving the direction) shall be—

(a) laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is given, and

(b) published in Iris Oifigiúil within 28 days of the giving of it.

11 Financial assistance to local authorities.

11.—(1) The Commission may, out of income generated from the payment of fees under this Act, provide financial assistance to local authorities to support the development or provision of infrastructure to facilitate and support the operation of small public service vehicles.

(2) For the purpose of facilitating the provision of financial support under this section, the Commission may prepare a scheme that shall include provisions relating to the conditions that may be applied to the application for, approval of and payment of such financial support.

(3) A scheme under subsection (2) shall be prepared in consultation with the Council and with the consent of the Minister.

12 Provision of services.

12.—(1) For the purpose of enabling the Commission to perform its functions, a statutory body may provide any service to the Commission on such terms and conditions (including payment for such service) as may be agreed and the Commission may avail of such service.

(2) In this section “service” includes the use of premises or equipment and the use of services or employees.

13 Composition and procedure of Commission.

13.—(1) The Commission shall consist of at least one member and not more than 3 members.

(2) Each member of the Commission shall be known as a Commissioner for Taxi Regulation and is in this Act referred to as a “Commissioner”.

(3) Subject to this Act, the Commission may regulate its own procedure.

14 Appointment and term of office of Commissioners.

14.—(1) Each Commissioner shall be appointed—

(a) by the Minister, and

(b) on such terms and conditions, including remuneration, as the Minister may fix, with the consent of the Minister for Finance.

(2) A person shall not be appointed as a Commissioner unless the Civil Service and Local Appointments Commissioners, after holding a competition on behalf of the Commission, have selected him or her for appointment as a Commissioner.

(3) A Commissioner appointed in accordance with subsection (2) shall be appointed on a full-time basis for a period of not less than 3 years and not more than 5 years.

(4) Where there is more than one Commissioner, the Minister shall appoint one of them to be chairperson of the Commission on such terms and conditions of appointment, including remuneration, as the Minister may fix, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, to hold office in a full-time capacity for a period of not less than 3 and not more than 5 years.

(5) The chairperson shall have a casting vote in the case of decisions to be taken by the Commission in the event of a tied vote.

(6) A Commissioner, including the chairperson, whose term of office expires by effluxion of time shall be eligible for re-appointment to serve a second term, subject to a limit of serving no more than 10 years on the Commission.

(7) A Commissioner shall not serve more than 2 terms of office as a Commissioner.

(8) In circumstances where the chairperson is unavailable to perform his or her duties, the Minister shall appoint an acting chairperson to assume the duties of chairperson of the Commission for a stated period not exceeding 6 months. The acting chairperson shall be an existing Commissioner.

(9) The Commission may act where a vacancy arises in its membership.

15 Deputy commissioner.

15.—The Commission shall, where there is only one Commissioner appointed under section 14, designate a member of its staff as a deputy member of the Commission (“deputy commissioner”) who shall assume and carry out with the authority of the Commission all of the functions of the Commission in the absence of the Commissioner or where the membership of the Commission is vacant.

16 Resignation and removal of Commissioners.

16.—(1) A Commissioner may resign by giving notice in writing to the Minister of his or her intention to resign and any such resignation shall take effect as of the date upon which the Minister shall have received notice of the resignation.

(2) A Commissioner may be removed from office by the Minister—

(a) if, in his or her opinion, the Commissioner has become incapable through ill health of effectively performing his or her duties, or

(b) for stated misbehaviour.

(3) In removing a Commissioner, the Minister shall give a statement of the reason or reasons for the removal to the Commissioner and the statement of reasons shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

(4) Where the chairperson of the Commission ceases to be a Commissioner he or she shall also thereupon cease to be chairperson of the Commission.

17 Restrictions relating to Commissioners.

17.—(1) A Commissioner is deemed to have vacated his or her office where he or she—

(a) is nominated as a member of Seanad Éireann, or

(b) is nominated as a candidate for election as a member of Dáil Éireann or to the European Parliament, or is regarded pursuant to Part XIII of the Second Schedule to the European Parliament Elections Act 1997, as having been elected to the European Parliament to fill a vacancy.

(2) A person who is, for the time being, entitled under the Standing Orders of either House of the Oireachtas to sit in either House or who is a member of the European Parliament shall, while he or she is so entitled or is such a member, be disqualified from becoming a Commissioner.

(3) (a) A person who is a member of a local authority is disqualified from becoming a Commissioner.

(b) A Commissioner is deemed to have vacated his or her office where he or she becomes a member of a local authority.

(4) A Commissioner shall not hold any other office or employment in respect of which emoluments are payable.

(5) For a period of 12 months after a Commissioner has ceased to be a Commissioner, such Commissioner shall not accept any office, consultancy or employment where, in the course of such office, consultancy or employment, the Commissioner could or might use or disclose any confidential information acquired by him or her in the exercise of his or her functions under this Act.

18 Staff of Commission.

18.—(1) The Commission may—

(a) with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance, determine the number, grading, remuneration and other conditions of service of staff to be appointed to the Commission, and

(b) appoint to be members of the staff of the Commission such persons as the Commission may determine from time to time.

(2) Where a member of the staff of the Commission has previous service in the civil service or in a local authority, such service shall be reckonable for the purposes of, but subject to any other exceptions or exclusions in—

(a) the Redundancy Payments Acts 1967 to 2001,

(b) the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts 1973 to 2001,

(c) the Unfair Dismissals Acts 1977 to 2001,

(d) the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994,

(e) the Worker Protection (Regular Part-Time Employees) Act 1991, and

(f) the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997.

19 Consultants.

19.—(1) The Commission may, from time to time, engage such consultants or advisers as it may consider necessary to assist it in the discharge of its functions.

(2) Any fees due to a consultant or adviser engaged under this section shall form part of the expenses of the Commission.

20 Membership of Houses of Oireachtas, European Parliament and local authorities by staff.

20.—(1) Where a person employed by the Commission—

(a) is nominated as a member of Seanad Éireann,

(b) is elected as a member of either House of the Oireachtas or to the European Parliament,

(c) is regarded pursuant to Part XIII of the Second Schedule to the European Parliament Elections Act 1997, as having been elected to the European Parliament to fill a vacancy, or

(d) becomes a member of a local authority,

he or she shall upon that happening, stand seconded from his or her employment by the Commission and shall not be paid by, or be entitled to receive from, the Commission remuneration or allowances in respect of the period commencing on such nomination, election, when he or she is so regarded as having been so elected or becoming a member of a local authority, as the case may be, and ending when he or she ceases to be a member of either such House, the European Parliament, or the local authority, as the case may be.

(2) A person who is, for the time being, entitled under the Standing Orders of either House of the Oireachtas to sit in either House or who is a member of the European Parliament shall, while he or she is so entitled or is such a member, be disqualified from becoming a member of the staff of the Commission.