And your view on that ?

I spoke to a "jockey" who was on the same circuit as me 15 years ago, he drove/drives for the base owner, and he told me he and the other 7 drivers who drive the base owners cars are now PAYE and on the NMW instead of 1/3rd of the take of the vehicle as before, and they get holiday pay/SSP/bank holiday premium but no overtime extra

maybe the base owner thought PAYE would be cheaper OR maybe he was advised to do it or risk 30 years back payments of tax/N.I. his "self employed" drivers could have cost him.... its never been tested in court by HMRC has it?

I think they can only go back 6 years.

Yes the taxman can go back 20 years but his basis for going back that number of years will always be on the lines that following an enquiry into a specific year he has proved that your records for that particular year are seriously inaccurate.
You are therefore, in the taxman’s eyes, either a liar and a cheat or, at best, totally incompetent.
Either way around, your business records are not a reliable basis for establishing your taxable profits. The taxman then only needs to make estimates which he can justify as being reasonable.
It really doesn’t happen very often but when the taxman does seek to go back more than 6 years your discredited records will be of no use.

maybe the base owner thought PAYE would be cheaper OR maybe he was advised to do it or risk 30 years back payments of tax/N.I. his "self employed" drivers could have cost him.... its never been tested in court by HMRC has it?

well HAS the "1/3rd the bag and your self employed" ever been tried by HMRC?

I dont know, but it looks to me that its clearly bogus self employment, would love to have a go at it.

Addy Lee recently removed ALL shift requirements from their Drivers they did not do that for the efficiency of the business, but I suspect they were about to get hammered in a court! or Employment tribunal

Is it possible to be self employed as a hack when the fares are set by the local council?

In reality only a PH operator can be self employed because they set their own fare structure.The drivers at the firm don't set their own prices and therefore are not self employed.

Is it possible to be self employed as a hack when the fares are set by the local council?

As a general guide as to whether a worker is an employee or self-employed;

if the answer is 'Yes' to all of the following questions, then the worker is probably an employee:

Do they have to do the work themselves?
Can someone tell them at any time what to do, where to carry out the work or when and how to do it?
Can they work a set amount of hours?
Can someone move them from task to task?
Are they paid by the hour, week, or month?
Can they get overtime pay or bonus payment?

If the answer is 'Yes' to all of the following questions, it will usually mean that the worker is self-employed:

Can they hire someone to do the work or engage helpers at their own expense?
Do they risk their own money?
Do they provide the main items of equipment they need to do their job, not just the small tools that many employees provide for themselves?
Do they agree to do a job for a fixed price regardless of how long the job may take?
Can they decide what work to do, how and when to do the work and where to provide the services?
Do they regularly work for a number of different people?
Do they have to correct unsatisfactory work in their own time and at their own expense?

In reality only a PH operator can be self employed because they set their own fare structure.The drivers at the firm don't set their own prices and therefore are not self employed.