Taxi Driver Online

Dear Sirs

On your opening page you have the story of a guy on the Brighton waiting list for some 26 years.

He has been offered a HC plate on 4 or 5 different occasions.
On every occasion he's turned it down (which is his right I guess).

I’m sure you’ll agree, without furnishing your members with this knowledge it does make for a distorting story.
Maybe you weren’t to know but if you ask the lad himself he'll confirm it.

Regards

Belt

If this is true, he aint waited for 26 years surely an offer would return him to the bottom of the list?

Lists are an unfair way of plate allocation anyway and probably illegal

Wharfie

Well at least we have had it confirmed that he has been waiting 26 years.

Why would a person turn down something, that he every year requests?

What about the lads who have been waiting 19,20,21,22 years? Is that OK?

No its not ok.
I have just heard that some of the lads at the top of the list have been offered ten grand for there place on the list. Someone else will buy the London Cab and insure it.
All they have to do for that money is sign away the plate straight after they get it from the council.
Rotten to the core, the whole thing.

Sorry about the whinge up lads.
I like the site though, well done everyone involved.

I think you are quite right to be angry and demonstrates just how lists are very unfair!

I think the criterion should be by interview and pick the best though it is subjective, even then

it is quite a disgraceful way to carry on.

Wharfie

It is a disgraceful way to operate. But what can a few drivers do?
One of the lads that runs the drivers associartion has written to the council telling them whats going on. If they reply and he tells me I will tell you what happens.
But dont hold your breath.

Strange thought !! so what criterion should this driver meet who sets it? who says you have or havent meet it? hmmm and it wouldnt be open to coruption would it.
NO its simple there should be no waiting list, why... because there should be no limit on numbers.

Still havent meet anyone that has put up a decent arguement for limited numbers other than their pension fund (plate).

Simple its against ALL competition laws wish I had the cash see me in European court (well before OFT saw the light)

_________________
Dont confuse "The Knowledge" with "knowledge"

I wonder if when they were drafting the Scottish Report or looking into clause 1.147..., the powers that be went to the lawyers and asked what would be permitted.

Perhaps they said, "you must be joking, cos none of it would now be allowed".

Perhaps they then went to the competition authorities, which is why we have the major OFT market investigation.

Perhaps the end is nigh, for the restrictions on quantity.

first of all I am talking law as it is now here, I cannot support limit by numbers.

the criterion set by the council, you take the best ones like applying for a job, as fir backhanders no system is imune from that

Wharfie

That must have been why the Scottish consultation completely ignored license quotas for taxi and proposed extending them to PH

Either that or they didn't have a scooby

Dusty

I think the problem is that competition law doesn't apply to councils carrying out regulatory functions, or they would have been challenged years ago.

It's the same with the Royal Parks case last year, which concerned a London minicab being prosecuted for driving in one of the parks, which breaches by-laws - only black cabs are allowed.

I can't remember the details of the case but I think the firm (Addison Lee??) said that it breached their right to "peaceful enjoyment of property" under the Human Rights Act - they argued that this right must be available in a non-discriminatory manner and that allowing only black cabs to use the parks breached this right.

But the judge said that because the bye-laws were regulatory in manner then they were permissable as long as the grounds seemed reasonable.

Let's face it if we could rely on the competition law and the Human Rights Act then quotas and things like WAV only licenses, PH being barred from bus lanes etc would have been swept away years ago.

However, you may be right Mr Jiffy, there could be an avenue under European Law (free movement of workers and capital) but I think this only applies to people in one country wanting to move to another, and not people in one country wanting to challenge that country's law.

So perhaps a Frenchman could challenge Brighton's restricted numbers under European law, but a Brighton PH driver or jockey couldn't

I wouldn't take the above as a definitive statement of the law, but it's probably not far off it, but if you want it chapter and verse, see a good competition lawyer - only several hundred pounds an hour

Alternatively, wait for the OFT and hopefully they and/or the Competition Commission and government will do it for free

Or pro bono, as our competition lawyer might put it

Dusty

Without doubt the latter is the truth.

So am I right. The Scottish paper wanted to restrict ph plates instead of getting rid of the restrictions on taxi numbers.
What would they do in areas that don't restrict taxi numbers?
Would you have a limit on ph numbers but not on taxi numbers?
Has that been passed?

Yes Pete, they didn't mention taxis quotas at all, but just said that the taxi trade and others were pressing for a series of PH measures including numerical restrictions.

As for your others questions, the above is the sum total of discussion on the issue, so they didn't quite get as far as your questions

Dusty