Kenilworth's MP has submitted a bill to the House of Commons which aims to help improve access to private transport for disabled people.

The Taxis and Private Hire Vehicles (Disabled Persons) Bill was submitted to the House of Commons by MP for Kenilworth and Southam Jeremy Wright on Wednesday, June 16.

Mr Wright has said that "there are still gaps" in the law which make hiring taxis and private hire vehicles (PHVs) difficult for disabled people.

The bill is aimed in particular at people "with walking frames, or with sensory, communication and cognitive impairments."

Mr Wright was selected in the ballot for Private Member's Bills, meaning that he is one of 20 backbench MPs allowed to propose to Parliament a change to the current law.

The bill is not scheduled to have its second reading until 14 January 2022. However, as Mr Wright was drawn as number 17 in the ballot, there is no guarantee that his law will in fact be debated.

Only the first seven MPs drawn receive a guaranteed debate time.

What does the Taxis and Private Hire Vehicles (Disabled Persons) Bill propose?

Whilst the full details of the bill are not available on the UK Government website yet, Mr Wright has released a short statement on his website.

He has said: "Many wheelchair users and assistance dog owners take advantage of legal rights to get around using these vehicles, and many drivers do all they can to help, but there are still too many accounts of people with disabilities of various kinds being denied vital assistance, overcharged for their journeys or denied carriage altogether.

"Passengers with walking frames, or with sensory, communication and cognitive impairments currently have no specific protection against discriminatory treatment.

"My Bill will oblige drivers of taxis and PHVs to accept passengers with disabilities, to refrain from charging them extra and to provide them with appropriate assistance, unless there is good reason why they should not be subject to these duties."

He added that this was of particular importance for many parts of Warwickshire where public transport is infrequent.

(Image of Jeremy Wright via parliament.uk