A BOROUGH licensed more taxi drivers than any other English council, an investigation has revealed.

Last year, Rossendale Council licensed 3,756 taxi drivers - far more than any other English council.

It puts the borough ahead of major cities such as Manchester with 2,329, Liverpool with 2,224 and Birmingham with 1,338 .

The borough has 53.7 licensed taxi drivers per 1,000 population, ten times as many as Christchurch, the second highest in the list, which has 5.3.

It means that Rossendale, which is home to 69,800 people, theoretically has a taxi driver for every 19 people, despite there being only 75 taxi rank spaces

The figures emerged in an investigation by The Times, which found that people from across the North sought licences from a town hall that was seen as a ‘soft touch.’

Licensing authorities in northern cities imposed stricter tests and requirements before granting a licence, while some charged higher fees, according to the Times investigation.

It also found that others tested geographical knowledge, English skill, insisted on safeguarding training or applying a stricter interpretation of the ‘fit and proper’ person test.

But in Rossendale, the Times said word had spread that getting a hackney carriage licence was easier, as any driver with one could take pre-booked private hire vehicle, or minicab, work anywhere, which they said led to a ‘spectacular’ surge in numbers.

It saw licensed taxi driver numbers soar by 2,404 per cent in 2007/17 in Rossendale, while England and Wales overall had a 15 per cent decline.

But Rossendale Council refuted claims made in the Times article.

A spokesman said: “Our top priority as an authority which licenses taxis has always been the safety of passengers and drivers.

“Our policies have always been based on national guidelines and the issues raised here – which are now more than two years old – have previously been thoroughly investigated and were unfounded.

“The investigations were reviewed by both our internal and external district auditors who were satisfied with the results.

“We are absolutely confident we have not issued any licences to anyone who should not have received one under the council’s previous policies and that all DBS checks were in place.

“Ov?er the last two years, we have worked to strengthen our approach on taxi licensing to ensure anyone who uses a taxi, or works in one, has the best protection we can offer."

“This includes the requirement for new applicants and renewals to pass a basic skills and local knowledge test, be enhanced DBS checked, trained in safeguarding and disability awareness and for all vehicles to carry CCTV. We have introduced a strict intended use policy on our hackney carriage vehicles and in addition vehicle owners who are not licensed drivers with us also need to be DBS checked.

“We also continue to regularly audit licences to ensure all holders meet these requirements.

“As part of the council’s regular audit schedule a further audit was completed in November 2017 which resulted in a substantial assurance rating in relation to our licensing policies and procedures.

“As a result of this work we now have one of the best taxi licensing policies in the country and have been working with the LGA on best practice for local authorities.