25 Feb 2008
Minicab touts face losing licence under 'three strikes' plan
A rule of "three strikes and you're out" for minicab touts has been
attacked as too lenient.
The policy, suggested in a London Assembly report, calls for private taxi
drivers to be stripped of their licence if they are caught touting for
passengers three times.
Legitimate minicab companies say touts should lose their licence the first
time they are caught.
London's 40,000 private taxi drivers are only allowed to carry customers
who have pre-booked, but rogue elements of the trade are breaking the
rules by touting on the streets.
The capital is also plagued by unlicensed uninsured cab drivers who are
often linked to other crime.
The report by Assembly member Peter Hulme Cross also said seven
sexual offences involving minicabs take place in the capital each month.
He added that work by the Cab Enforcement Unit had led to 3,800 arrests
for touting and a 46 per cent drop in cab-related sexual offences.
Mr Hulme Cross said that revoking licences would send a "clear signal to
drivers that touting is unacceptable".
But the minicab industry claimed it did not go far enough. Steve Wright,
chairman of the London Private Hire Car Association, said: "This is like
trying to put out the great fire of London with a water pistol. We want far
tougher action against this touting plague that has become a national disgrace.
"You cannot walk more than 50 yards in the West End in the evening
without someone offering you an illegal cab. There is nowhere near
enough enforcement action."
Mr Hulme Cross's proposals are expected to be approved by the London
Assembly on 11 March.
Source: This is London
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