Taxi Driver Online

Did the Council solicitor not say this at one of the RC meetings ? Selective memory methinks...

John, 99.9% of councillors have no idea, who the f*ck you are. To think they really give a sh*t about someone they don't know is lunacy. I've seen them abuse their powers without even batting an eyelid. They don't care. Ask Ali, he's been there.

Is this the same council solicitor who's been humped repeatedly in court, and that I ridiculed at a council meeting by telling councillors, he didn't have a clue what he was talking about.

McLeod is a clown, and a real lawyer worth his salt wouldn't have anything to do with that council. He's not there by accident John.

Well I'm slightly more au fait with English law than Scots law, but I don't really know anything about the procedural aspects, nor indeed do I know much about local authority licensing procedures

But the problem is formulating a substantive legal argument, and I'm not sure if there is a prima facie human rights argument - I mean, what human right is being breached precisely? I don't think it's illegal per se to discriminate, it has to be on grounds of sex, race or whatever to come within the ambit of the HRA. Perhaps indirect age or racial discrimination could be a goer, because younger drivers are less likely to get a plate, ditto immigrants.

But there are several other legal avenues that could be explored - such as European law - but of course as you allude the problem is the cost aspect. If you could hire fancy lawyers then there are all sorts of arguments that could be adduced, but that's a luxury that none of us can really afford.

And I take it that Jasbar's HR case isn't a goer now, in view of what you said above?

If the cost is the hurdle then how could that be surmounted - were you alluding to pooling costs in your original post?

“99.9% o’ Councillors don’t know who I am”. Really ?. I worked alongside, Paul Nolan, Davy Brown, Jackie O’donnel, Gary Couts, and aw’ their pals for many years son... They know who I am. Plus I knew every one o’ them, ( Apart from Davy Brown), long before they were Councillors

Apologies Skull, in the confusion caused by my dishwashing session I read the posts out of order and thus didn't see what you wrote subsequently about costs and the like.

And isn't the HR submission something that could be done on a DIY basis, or does a lawyer have to do it?

I'm still very dubious about a substantive HR case though.

By the way, it would be cheaper to do it somewhere else to avoid the CEC fee. If it succeeded elsewhere it would blow Edinburgh wide open anyway

The plate “value” is built on inequality, discrimination and exploitation. I know drivers who lost their drive simply for applying for a licence and others that are too frightened to speak out or can't get a drive because of their political opinion on restriction. I really don't think you would have a problem showing the effect restriction has on individual's rights. And that's before you get to the qualified driver, having the right of unfettered access to the tools of his trade, to earn a living, argument.

As for the costs involved the problem is you need to fund a HR, lawyer to fight your case, but there's nothing stopping you representing yourself. If you have the initial argument, and can demonstrate the effect the council's decision has on you as an individual or group.

Trust me Dusty, I've spoken to a top lawyer, and it all comes down to cash or finding a way to represent yourself and getting the argument into the legal process. The last thing he said was, Lawyers will fight anything, if you have money. Oh and btw, when he looked at the case, he said it had merits, he then told me to find the money or spend the next god only knows how many years finding a way to fight it.

I think the RC, meeting is the way into the process. If you have a proper legal submission before the council that can be carried into court on appeal.

After making your representations to the council RC, the argument becomes very narrow regarding the council's conduct and how they came by their decision when considering your application. You don't have to prove your case all over again. It's up to the council to show they've done everything in their power to protect your rights as a public body and I don't think it would be easy.

thats some parcel of rouges you got their john
all jobs for the boys every last one of them,craigmillar festival society springs to mind.

well since you've obviously turned to the dark side and support councils .

then i can see that your judgment has become clouded indeed if you cant see how much cash the council makes from this
then i will assume your Braille computer monitor is malfunctioning and leave it at that

The area we live in Ali consists of, as you know, mainly good people, including the ones I mentioned. There are though, some rogues, and I know them too... I know the difference and I’m sure you do as well. As far as “Jobs for the boys” . If people from the Area could do the job, they were used, quite right imo. They’d had enough of academics parachuting into Craimillar, building their cv’s up, and then [edited by admin] off !.

http://www.edinburghsucks.com/categorie ... ed/page/2/





http://www.edinburghsucks.com/2006/09/2 ... r-a-drive/

A gross misrepresentation.



I've never been particularly bothered about the money that councils are making from taxi licensing, Ali.



Rolling eyes indeed

Certainly a very good argument on paper.

My preferred approach when I first got interested in the subject was the (low profile) political route rather than the legal avenue. However, I effectively gave up on that a few years ago anyway.

Still not entirely sure about the substantive human rights case though, because there has to be discrimination based on some specified ground - inequality and exploitation per se aren't the basis for a legal challenge, or everyone everywhere would be at it. Of course, that's not to say that an argument couldn't be made, and given some of the flaccid cases that you often hear about being put forward even in the higher courts then it wouldn't need a top silk to come up with something plausible.

Of course, the big problem with this kind of thing is getting it all off the ground. Is there still an active grouping in Edinburgh pursuing a legal and/or political campaign, or has it all fragmented and fizzled out?

so which category are they in again

http://www.edinburghsucks.com/categorie ... aul-nolan/

academics parachuting in

is that what they told you
if you can point out to me what guys like nolan did for the community then i'm all ears