is it legal in scotland to for instance somebody calls your booking office and asks for a phv. your office has nothing available but accepts the job and phones the job through to another company with all the details is this legal ?

Yes quite legal in Scotland

Local or anywhere in Scotland?

Both, I just tell the punter I will get them one, or give them the number

Do you have an operator licence?

PH cars in Scotland can accept bookings without a separate licence.

Hears an interesting one, if a PH driver gets an operators licence and someone walks up off the street and asks to be taken somewhere are they breaking the law ? In effect the fare is being booked through the operator, do they have to have a physical building as an office ?

I think the touting issue would come into being if your senario happened.

i.e. what made the punter approach the PH?

if i dropoff and am approached "are you a cab"? and take all the details before anyone gets in the car, or tell em under some ancient law i have to drive back round the block and then i can take them wherever they want........