(1)Notwithstanding anything in the Act of 1847, a district council shall not grant a licence to drive a hackney carriage—
(a)unless they are satisfied that the applicant is a fit and proper person to hold a driver's licence; or
(b)to any person who has not for at least twelve months been, and is not at the date of the application for a driver's licence, the holder of a licence granted under Part III of the Act of 1972 (not being a provisional licence) authorising him to drive a motor car.
(2)Any applicant aggrieved by the refusal of a district council to grant a driver's licence on the ground that he is not a fit and proper person to hold such licence may appeal to a magistrates' court.