Taxi Driver Online

About 1,750 letters of protest from Glasgow Taxis staff were delivered A Glasgow taxi firm has called on the city council to reverse a decision to award a schools transport contract to rival mini cab companies.

Staff at Glasgow Taxis have written to the council claiming some mini cab firms ferrying vulnerable children could fall short of required standards.

The firm also claimed the move could force 150 of its staff out of work.

The protest follows a council decision to hand more work to other firms, including Network Private Hire.


Recently it emerged Network Private Hire had successfully increased its share of a contract ferrying vulnerable children to and from school.

The move came only a few months after the council denied Network an operators licence after police argued it had links to organised crime.

Network is appealing the decision and is entitled to continue trading in the interim.

'Thoroughly examined'

About 1,750 letters of protest from Glasgow Taxis staff were delivered to Glasgow's councillors on Tuesday.

The protest letter expressed "concern and surprise at recent worrying developments" at the city council, which has streamlined the amount of school runs it funds from 2,000 to 1,400.

The letter said operators accepted the council had to obtain best value for money from its suppliers in the current economic climate.


Network Private Hire has increased its share of council work But it called for other issues to be factored, such as the recent objections voiced by Strathclyde Police, to be considered.

The letter questioned "the selected taxi firm's suitability for such sensitive, publicly-funded contracts" and emphasised the requirement for Full Enhanced Disclosure Scotland approvals "for all registered drivers within that taxi firm's fleet".

It continued: "Many of the drivers used by the private hire firm to which the bulk of the work has now been allocated cannot possibly meet the criteria for a full Enhanced Disclosure Scotland Certificate".

However, a spokesman for Glasgow City Council said: "The huge financial challenges facing the council means we must spend the council's money with the greatest possible care.

"The use of taxis has been thoroughly examined and we have found we can reduce by 30% the number of trips to be made on a regular basis to support those with educational or social work needs."

He added: "We have well-established and robust contractual arrangements which we can't disregard on the basis of untested information."

Says it all really, doesn't it?

ta

Is there much difference if any between the enhanced DSC and an enhanced CRB? Don't the PH in Scotland have to have the same checks as the taxi drivers?

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Note to self: Just because it pops into my head does NOT mean it should come out of my mouth!!

Or they could work to bring PH up to the same standard as hacks.

Quality controls across the board for all those doing the same job.

A single tier licensing system.

That's why I asked the question because we're the same standard here but the vehicles we drive are different and obviously PH can't ply for hire

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Note to self: Just because it pops into my head does NOT mean it should come out of my mouth!!

Or they could lower the standard, or they could insist we all hop on one f*cking leg.

A single tier system wont happen.....full stop.

CC

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

I don't think lowering the standards is a good idea and I also don't think single tier will ever happen although it would be nice if it did. Btw the only way to hop is on one leg otherwise it's a jump

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Note to self: Just because it pops into my head does NOT mean it should come out of my mouth!!

It would be nice?

Can you see your colleagues in the Wirral all buying WAV's?

How many WAV type limousines could grandad license?

There are many different types of private hire......not just those who are wannabe HC drivers.

CC

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

I don't even have a WAV taxi so I sure as hell ain't going to have a WAV limo.

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Grandad,

But your going to have to have one in the super dooper single tier system......unless of course we have another tier just for limos, and maybe another, just for those people who cant get into WAV's.....lets call it a not private hire but a single tier type license which isnt the same as the other type of license we issue thing.

CC

_________________
Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

Sounds good to me.

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Grandad,

Yeah, I let my first thought of b*stard's go

CC

_________________
Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.
George Carlin

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Grandad,