SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 08, 2020
Taxi Leaks Open Letter To Shaun Bailey, Andrew Boff And Gregg Hands ...by Jim Thomas
There seems to have been quite a few crocodile tears, shed over Uber’s licence revocation from two GLA councillors, one of whom is a Mayoral candidate, and a central London MP, bleating over the poor 45,000 drivers who they allege would be unemployed and unable to feed their families.
Yet these same politicians haven’t spoken one word about the plethora of new ride-share apps that have suddenly sprung into life, on the back of Uber's potential collapse and the impact they’ve had on the world famous London Taxi trade.
The controversy over Uber’s licence, has been used over the last two and a half years to score political points...(and it’s not over yet as the appeal isn’t to be heard until the autumn)...In that time, we’ve seen Taxify (change their name to Bolt...to get round a previous revocation), Kapten, ViaVan, Kabbee, and now Ola, entered the market along side old timers such as Addison Lee, hoping to scoop up Uber’s drivers.
These teary eyed politicians have at no time, spoken out about the demise of the best Taxi service in the world.... 23,000 drivers plus the workforce employed by rental garages, mechanics, receptionists, vehicle suppliers and dealerships etc. During the last 4 years with the knowledge that Uber were unfit to be an operator, all they bleat about is the so called poor Uber drivers being thrown out of work, Yet they don’t mention there are over half a dozen new ride share apps that have appeared recently and virtually none of the drivers would be left unemployed!
They've offered nothing in the way of support for our heavily regulated 370 year old Licence Taxi trade, which has been torn apart by Uber's predatory pricing. Yes they are cheaper (sometimes) but that's easy when you've got billions pouring in from investment banks such as the one who employs an ex Tory chancellor, now editor of the Evening Standard, (at £650,000 a year). Using alleged unchecked, sexual predator, violent, drug dealing, fraudulent drivers...you play Russian roulette every time you hail a car through the app.
What needs to be pointed out is, if by some extreme miracle, Uber fail to win there appeal, (not forgetting the case is again to be heard by Chief Magistrate Emma Arbuthnot, alleged to have a conflict of interest through her husband Baron James) it doesn’t mean that the riding public will suddenly be safeguarded against a service using sexual predators, hackers, fraudsters, drug dealing dangerous drivers....a system that allows the picki up of complete strangers who then share the same vehicle on route.
The drivers working on these ‘new kid on the block’ app’s, will be the very same drivers who currently work for Uber...
Let's also not forget these drivers will have amongst their ranks the same 13,000 who bought fake criminal record DBS checks, the same drivers who astonishingly had medicals on-line, the ones who paid a third party to do their topographic exam for them. These are the same drivers who currently discriminate against the LGBT+ community and the same ones who won’t take guide dogs.
To be as clear as possible.... the problem has never been really been with just Uber (although they added to the problem by not passing on serious complaints about drivers to the police/TfL and still have no workable customer support phone service)...the problem also lays squarely at the feet of TfLTPH who, have been described by the GLA transport committee as woefully inadequate.
TfL are failing public safety by a failure to regulate existing legislation.
So in summing up, a word in your shell like Shaun Bailey, Andrew Boff and Greg Hands.... if you want the public to vote for you, then you need to show concern for the protection of the general public. Show them that you truly understand that public safety trumps profit.
Nether forget that eventually, the truth will out...
Show the public that you will try to stop these non-domicile, nontaxpaying, foreign companies circumnavigating the system and current legislation.
Legislation that has been put in place by Parliament, to keep the general public safe..... show your voters that you intend to protect thie current system and by default protect them, no matter how much wealth these companies have to ‘spread about’.
TfL need’s investigation and the directors and managers who have allow the system to slip into the present sorry state need to be sacked and in cases of illegality, prosecuted.
(Make sure reader that you sign up to UTAG17)👇
TfLTPH have had eight years to get their house in order and they’ve worryingly ignored most complaints from legitimate trade body representation.
TAXI LEAKS EXTRA BIT
Let’s not forget that in the first 6 months of 2019 (according to TfL’s own statistics) Uber racked up nearly 600,000 complaints, 28,000 over safety issues!!!
Let’s not forget that in the first 6 months of 2019 (according to TfL’s own statistics) Uber racked up nearly 600,000 complaints, 28,000 over safety issues!!!
JUST RELEASED UBER RAPE/SEXUAL ASSAULT FIGURES TO 2018.... courtesy of the LCDC.
In 2018, TfL revoked 74 Private Hire Drivers for Sexual Offence allegations.
Of the 74 revocations,55 notifications of serious complaint or driver dismissal were received from PH operators.
Uber London Ltd. 51
Addison Lee. 1
Trident Logistics. 1
Quick Cars. 1
Goldline cars. 1
Taxi leaks editor has received this reply from GLA councillor Andrew Boff
In respect of:
- 1)"Yet these same politicians haven’t spoken one word about the plethora of new ride-share apps"
Andrew’s reply
“Kapten are providing even more choice for Londoners”
Taxi leaks replied: looking at the replies to your post I’m surprised you wanted that bought up again.
- 2)“These teary eyed politicians have at no time, spoken out about the demise of the best Taxi service in the world..."
Andrew’s reply:
“The future holds many threats for regulated taxi industries across the globe, and London, with its innovative and large economy, presents particularly sizeable problems for drivers of its iconic black cabs”.
Taxi Leaks Replied: Andrew that report is from 2015 and 5 years on still no action to help the Taxi trade whatsoever.
- 3) “They've offered nothing in the way of support for our heavily regulated 370 year old Licence Taxi trade"
Andrews reply:
Under the current Mayor, Black Cabs are dying a slow death. Sadiq Khan thinks he can buy you off for a few years and then when he’s gone, it will be too late.
Taxi Leaks replied: Scapping the knowledge and introducing price surging like Uber, would not save the 370 year old Taxi trade as such, it would completely destroy it... Well thank you Andrew, at least we now know what your end game is now!
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