Codswallop! Councillor's fury at Wolverhampton taxi protesthttps://www.expressandstar.com/news/loc ... i-protest/Wolverhampton taxi drivers have been lambasted for talking ‘codswallop’ and told their planned protest this month is ‘outrageous’ and ‘pointless’.
Councillor Alan Bolshaw, the licensing lead for Wolverhampton council, has launched a scathing attack after taxi drivers revealed plans to hold a go-slow protest in the city on June 28 – the same day as England’s final group stage match against Belgium in the World Cup.
The drivers are protesting in a bid to pressure the council into introducing tougher licensing tests as they say they are being forced out of their jobs as thousands of licences are handed out by the council to drivers across the UK.
But Councillor Bolshaw described the drivers’ comments as ‘codswallop’ and said it was ‘pointless’ to keep protesting.
He said: “This proposed action is nothing short of outrageous.
“Protests of this nature do nothing but inconvenience the public and to plan this on the evening of an England World Cup match, when the city centre will be very busy, is a provocative act which will only serve to antagonise people.”
Campaigners claim the council have made the licensing test too easy, which has led to too many taxi drivers on the roads.
The test also takes 20 working days or less, and costs £69 – the cheapest in the region.
A total of 40 per cent of candidates fail the exam each time, the council revealed.
Councillor Bolshaw added: “The driver representatives talk about public safety being the motivation behind this action.
"This is utter codswallop, this action is about protecting an industry which for too long has been a closed shop which doesn’t welcome competition – even if the public do.
“Technology has revolutionised the taxi industry and Wolverhampton Council has been at the forefront of this step change.
“It is pointless drivers protesting to us about issues which are governed by national legislation and the fact I keep having to say this is frankly becoming tiresome.
“The law allows drivers and operators to get their licence where they wish and if people choose to come here because of our efficient and speedy system, then we are not allowed to turn them away.
“I urge the drivers to call off this futile action and if they are serious about these issues, perhaps would do better to take them up with the lawmakers at Westminster rather than once again target the people of Wolverhampton.”
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Another leader column from the Express & Star on the issue. Pretty unusual for the local press to get involved in this way, but well worth a read anyway
Express & Star comment: Wolverhampton council has to sort out taxi messhttps://www.expressandstar.com/news/voi ... taxi-mess/There appears to be no end in sight to the controversy over Wolverhampton council's system of handing out taxi licences.The cash-strapped authority charges just £69 for a cab licence, making it one of the cheapest places in the country to get one.
Critics also say the test includes no local knowledge element, enabling drivers from all over the country to pass in Wolverhampton.
Council bosses are adamant that the city's tests are as stringent as they come, but serious questions remain over whether the checks that are in place are strong enough.
One thing that is certain, is that the council is not making any friends over what appears to be a fairly blatant attempt to corner the market.
Wolverhampton has given out more than 9,000 licences this year, compared to less than 1,000 in 2015.
But while the council counts up the profits, there have been consequences.
Later this month fed up cab drivers will hold a go-slow protest through the city, arguing that the surge in the number of drivers is forcing them to work all hours God sends in order to make a living.
It is also worrying that many licences are held by drivers operating miles away from Wolverhampton.
A recent E&S investigation showed there were cabbies with paperwork issued in the city driving in places such as Stockport, Weymouth and Cambridge.
It is hard to see how the city council is able to regulate drivers who are working such vast distances away from the West Midlands.
Underpinning all of this, is the key issue of communication.
Council bosses do not overly interested in listening to the complaints from the cab drivers, and instead have branded their protest 'outrageous'.
Equally, it is clear that the authority has little time for the issues raised by other local authorities.
There is no doubt that Wolverhampton council has made a fantastic effort to become more commercially viable in the face of years of central government budget cuts.
But there needs to be a full and frank discussion about how it distributes cab licences.
A resolution that is both viable and suitable for all parties must be found as a matter of urgency.
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