Press release: Consultation on revised guidance for goods and passenger transport industries

The Senior Traffic Commissioner for Great Britain is today (16 July 2018) launching a [consultation] (https://whitehall-admin.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/admin/consultations/860037) on proposed changes to the Statutory Documents.

The publications describe how commissioners apply the law and take a proportionate approach to their regulatory powers.

They are reviewed regularly to provide clearer guidance and show transparency in the way traffic commissioners come to their decisions.

Many of the amendments recognise changes in the law and appeal decisions made by the Upper Tribunal.

13 of the 15 documents have been reviewed, with the changes covering key areas of operator licensing, including:

• Stronger guidance on the practice of ‘fronting’ (document 1 – good repute & fitness) • Greater emphasis on the importance of completing applications (document 1 – good repute & fitness) • Improved guidance around continuous and effective management and disqualification (document 3 – transport managers) • A new section on support for tribunal users (document 9 – case management) • Improved guidance on the main occupation criteria (document 13 – small PSVs) • Updated guidance on what happens when periods of grace expire (several documents) • A new section on driver employment status (document 5 – legal entities)

Richard Turfitt, the Senior Traffic Commissioner for Great Britain, said:

“The traffic commissioners are justifiably proud of our efforts to modernise. The Statutory Documents are necessarily based on legal developments but few regulators are able to demonstrate the same level of transparency in their decision making as that achieved through their publication.

“Although many of the proposed amendments reflect changes in the law and decisions made at appeal, we want industry to have a chance to review the Documents before we re-issue them.”

The consultation will run from 16 July 2018 to 27 August 2018.