Taxi Driver Online

News is filtering through that the court case today was a bit of a fiasco. CEC have said if they lose they will try and take the case to the House of Lords. Vincent's Case is going back to the Sheriff Principal, which could be another five-month.

All in all not very satisfactory.

Regards

JD

So the council that has bundles of cash is trying to starve out the licensed drivers in their quest for equality.

There was a time when taxi associations/unions looked after drivers, now they just look after their back pockets, and f*** the troops.

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IDFIMH

With local & Scottish Parliament elections coming up this May I wonder if the local electorate are aware the ease the Labour run council spend their council tax contributions ?

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxicabs_around_the_world

Renfrewshire Council is the same when they are on the wrong end of a Sheriff Court decision except they only go as far as the Court of Session

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxicabs_around_the_world

Sussex you're definitely on another planet, you have two man in Edinburgh who openly claim that it is their intention to destroy the Edinburgh Taxi Trade, and you expect the local associations to support that... the mind bobbles...... and I think yours is burned-out

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Justice for the 96. It has only taken 27 years...........repeat the same lies for 27 years and the truth sounds strange to people!

Email to the Regulatory Committee councillors

From: "Jim Taylor" <jasbar@btinternet.com>
To: "Alastair Paisley" <alastair.paisley@edinburgh.gov.uk>; "David Walker" <david.j.walker@edinburgh.gov.uk>; "elizabeth maginnis" <elizabeth.maginnis@edinburgh.gov.uk>; "Lawrence Marshall" <lawrence.marshall@edinburgh.gov.uk>; "Liz O'Malley" <liz.o'malley@edinburgh.gov.uk>; "Lorna Shiels" <lorna.shiels@edinburgh.gov.uk>; "Michael Dixon" <michael.dixon@edinburgh.gov.uk>; "Shami Khan" <shami.khan@edinburgh.gov.uk>; "Chris Wigglesworth" <chris.wigglesworth@edinburgh.gov.uk>
Cc: "Donald Anderson" <donald.anderson@edinburgh.gov.uk>; "Ewan Aitken" <ewan.aitken@edinburgh.gov.uk>
Subject: Court of Session appeals - Day 1
Date: 07 March 2007 05:21

Councillors

Day one of the Council's appeals against the Sheriffs decision in the cases of Salteri et al.

Reports back point to the council encountering some difficulty. Although operating in extremely difficult circumstances, with a tenuous case, QC Armstrong is struggling valiantly to defend the council's position. He is to be commended.

However, during over five and a half hours of questioning from the appeal judges, with much nervous wig pulling his only distraction from the onslaught, the situation does not look good for the council.

However, it is not over yet. Tomorrow it is understood the Lords will decide whether the council's appeal is competent.

Should it indeed be declared competent, then the decision of the judges will apply. Given the strength of the case, odds are the licences will be granted by the court.

Should it be deemed incompetent, the fall back position is Sheriff Bowen's confirmation of the decisions of Sheriffs Liddle and Horsburgh, which was to grant the licences.

This would appear to place the council in some difficulty. It has been mooted that in such circumstances the council may appeal directly to the House of Lords.

Councillors may be interested to know that since the 1707 Act of Union, like a "West Lothian question" in reverse, "there is no rule that Scottish Law Lords in the House of Lords (and conventionally there usually are only two in any appellate Committee) must be present to hear a Scottish appeal, let alone that a majority or all of those sitting should be Scottish Law Lords.
Therefore Scottish appeals might be (and have been) decided by judges that have no training in, or experience of, Scots law.

The House of Lords has been responsible for forcing extraneous English laws into Scots law with no regard for the fundamental differences between the two systems nor for the Act of Union which made clear safeguard against this situation.

Appeals unto the House of Lords from the Court of Session exist only de facto with no legal basis and consequently should be annulled." *

* source http://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/session/index.asp

Councillors must be proud of the council's stoic and determined attempt to maintain its policy of restricting licences. But, shouldn't we all wonder how much this is all costing? And, for what real purpose? And, taken to the ultimate appeal, how much bigger will the humiliation be?

* source http://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/session/index.asp

Neither of my two good friends you mention where in court yesterday, it was four different folks.

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IDFIMH

A Very good report Jim.

When I was informed by Vince that CEC were planning to take this to the House of Lords I was somewhat surprised and advised him that the Council wouldn't be granted leave to appeal to the House of Lords but I understand in Scotland you don't need leave, you can petition the Lords committee Direct and they will decide whether the appeal is competent. The problem for CEC is that the Lords Committee’s decision to allow or refuse a petition is dependent on whether the case involves a point of law of general public importance that ought to be considered by the House.

None of the facts surrounding CEC's application come close to what is expected for a Lords appeal.

If the Lords decide today then everyone will get their license and perhaps we can consider the implications for past refusals. Great news for those guys who stuck to their guns. If you're reading this Nick you don't need any reply from the pm you sent me. I would get down to court today and see what is said.

Regards

JD

And when has the local associations ever served anyone bar the bosses?

Your average driver does what he is told, and if he fights his corner the barons start crying. That's the associations you like, but I don't.

I think everyone should be treated the same, even the unions are now on the bosses side, which speaks volumes about them.

The lads in Scotland might not win, I might not win, but it wont be through lack of effort.

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IDFIMH

Trevor, have you always been a pri**?


The Edinburgh Taxi Trade is run by councillors while pric** like you fawn at their feet. The status quo is about being owned by these bast***. How many times does this have to be said: There is no intrinsic value in a licence plate. You don’t own a plate. The transfer of licence plates is strictly forbidden under the Act. Those who buy a plate for a false value do so to leap frog the interested parties list and nothing else. And yes Trevor, pricks like you might benefit from the whole process but anyone who buys a plate is buying a ‘pup’. Now if that’s running a business then the pric** that buy into this only get what they deserve.

Jim and I were up at Council HQ watching the whole process -the abject fear of those being judged - the so called trade representatives tugging forelock while claiming to represent the owners and drivers. It was pathetic.

Yes Trev, I can see how this would suit you and CC but for some of us the price is just too high.

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All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.
George Orwell, "Animal Farm"

Well Skull. As they say it takes one to know one so it looks like we are evenly matched,
I would have thought that it was blatantly obvious I was referring to the statement which is stupid, Even you should see that, it's like giving the keys to your house to the burglar, I was not referring to the right or wrongs of the court cases, if you check back you will see I haven't up to now, there's a big difference between one person standing against the council when he believes that their procedures have wronged him/her,
but the stance that you take, about destroying the whole of the cab trade in Edinburgh is another argument entirely. you have declared war on your own trade, and in wars there are casualties.

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Justice for the 96. It has only taken 27 years...........repeat the same lies for 27 years and the truth sounds strange to people!

No Trev what we want to destroy is the mindset of people like you.

The Edinburgh Cab trade will never be destroyed only the numpties who would sell their own mother in an attempt to defend their little illusion of ‘businessmen’. I made the point before, when I first came into the trade no one was a businessman, you were just buying a job. The owner/businessman bull** only came into being when plates started being sold and even then I couldn’t believe people were prepared to buy into this shi*. The closest this lot got to being businessmen was sleeping with one. But know this, this trade will be brought down by the very thing they are trying to protect, Plate ‘Values’.

The fact is Trev, you and CC depend on these numpties not having the brains to work out what the feck is going on; their ignorance is your profit margin. And yes I agree if they are that stupid then they will always be exploited by the likes of you but spare me the 'all for the good of the trade routine'.

Anyone paying that kind of money to jump a waiting list just to buy a job needs locked up for their own safety.

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All animals are equal but some animals are more equal than others.
George Orwell, "Animal Farm"

Gary, you're the one that keeps going on about plate values not me, I do not have a problem with plates being issued, I just don't believe you should keep on issuing them untill you create the situation of oversupply, you might be happy with drivers earning less money and driving longer hours but I'm not , let's face it Gary you want everything for nothing, basically because you're not prepared to work for it, the people that get things out of life usually are The grafters but you're not one of them, don't worry about me, there's no need, although I appreciate your concern, the only person I rely on is myself.

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Justice for the 96. It has only taken 27 years...........repeat the same lies for 27 years and the truth sounds strange to people!

But any plate value is due to the restricted numbers cartel, not someone grafting.

Many people have grafterd for years on ranks in unrestricted areas, yet their plate is worth nothing.

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Taxi Driver Online
www.taxi-driver.co.uk

probably so are their jobs, it is not my fault their thick..

Birmingham is un-restricted yet some plates still have a value?

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Justice for the 96. It has only taken 27 years...........repeat the same lies for 27 years and the truth sounds strange to people!