The House of Commons Transport Committee's report on the OFT's taxi and private hire study branded it "partial, doctrinaire and sloppily conducted".

MPs on the House of Commons Transport Committee followed their recent grilling of OFT officials with a scathing report which concluded that the OFT study manifestly does not contain the evidence required to to support its proposal to abolish quantity regulation.  The report was also highly critical of the OFT's recommendations on quality controls and fare competition.

Among the Committee's concerns on the removal of quantity controls were:

• On waiting times, the evidence was unconvincing and only reached after unexplained statistical adjustments.  The evidence from Cambridge was unreliable as it compared the market at term time when numbers were restricted to the student vacations after de-restriction.  The high number of students in Cambridge meant that the figures could not be directly compared.  Also, the OFT did not sufficiently consider how de-restriction might impact on the waiting times for telephone bookings.

• On vehicle numbers, the OFT did not adequately address the fact that although de-restriction increased taxi numbers it also decreased private hire numbers, thus impacting on the those booking by telephone.  The OFT's figures also showed that combined taxi and PHV numbers are higher per head of population in restricted areas as compared to unrestricted locations.

• As regards the supply side, the Committee's report highlighted the fact that the T&G provided figures showing that average fares are lower in restricted areas

• The report was also critical of the OFT's assertion that service quality could be regulated separately from quantity controls.  Evidence was cited from local authorities which considered that de-restriction had led to a decline in vehicle quality, and also that the need for monitoring of quality would increase without numerical controls.

The Committee's report was also critical of the OFT's implication that local authorities should not adhere to the Metropolitan Conditions of Fitness, because of the impact that this could have on disabled people, and also condemned the OFT's recommendations on quality as 'vague'.

On the OFT's recommendation to encourage competition on fares, the Committee said that the needs of the public had been given less consideration than the desire to force down prices.  It concluded that since nothing currently prevented competition on price then there was no need for change.

Welcome
The Committee's report was given a warm welcome by the taxi trade.  T&G Cab Section representative Peter Kavanagh said: "The proper place for the OFT's plans is the bin."  He added that the proposals were "naive" and "driven by narrow dogma".

Day of Action
Meanwhile, taxi drivers throughout the country took part in a Day of Action to highlight opposition to the OFT's proposals.  In Brighton more than 100 taxis staged a 'go-slow' drive, while in London drivers picketed the OFT's offices.

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