TfL Ref: FOI-4979-1718
 
Thank you for your email received by us on 23 March 2018 asking for information about private hire driver licensing.
 
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can confirm that we hold the information you require. You asked for the following:
 
Please tell me on how many occasions over the past 5 years TfL has taken away the licence of a private hire driver following sexual assault allegations. If more than one allegation was made against a driver please tell me how many allegations were made before their licence was taken away.
 
We aim to maintain the highest industry standards by working with the police and other bodies to improve passenger safety.
 
Where we are notified by the police of an allegation regarding a Transport for London (TfL) licensed taxi or private hire driver we will immediately assess whether there is a risk to public safety.
 
We may immediately suspend a driver's licence prior to a charge or conviction, if we believe the individual is not 'fit and proper' based on the initial evidence. The driver will remain suspended until we receive the results of the police investigation and any court outcomes. A further decision would then be made on the driver’s licence upon conclusion of the investigation or any court proceedings.
 
In some cases, we may revoke a driver's licence immediately, irrespective of the results of the police investigation and subsequent court proceedings.
 
The majority of the information you asked for is available on our website using the following link: www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/safety-and-security/security-on-the-network/tph-related-sexual-offences.
 
In accordance with section 21 of the FOI Act, we are not obliged to supply you with a copy of the requested information as it is already accessible to you elsewhere.
 
Because we intend to publish data for 2017 later this year, this part of your request for information is subject to an exemption from disclosure in accordance with section 22 of the FOI Act, which covers information intended for future publication.
 
The use of this exemption is subject to a public interest test, which requires us to consider whether the public interest in applying the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosure. We recognise that the release of information would promote transparency and also help inform you about this issue. However, we consider that the release of the information in its current form would not serve the public interest as the analysis is incomplete and could potentially be misleading. Given the relatively short interval before publication we consider that the public interest favours the use of the exception at this time.
 
If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for any reason, please do not hesitate to contact me.
 
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal as well as information on copyright and what to do if you would like to re-use any of the information we have disclosed.
 
Yours sincerely
 
 
Jasmine Howard
FOI Case Officer
Information Governance
Transport For London