Taxi Driver Online

Kinda looks like Mr S is causing lots of bother.

Doubly appropriate then chipper.

£700 down the drain? I doubt it. The appeal will be worth every penny. I can't wait. The appeal has already been almost prepared. We just the council to give the go ahead, then Jacob goes on trial, along with those responsible for the debacle.

you will need the following finish the Mr S look

1.


2.

Chipper

Isn't it a case of its nice to look important rather than important to look nice?

It should be interesting, a complete amateur in the field of surveys and statistics against a multi million pound company regarded as experts in their field.

CC

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

Keep taking the tablets CC.

Just to keep you abreast of events.

Dear Cllr Anderson

I note that you read-receipted my email at 09:31 on 28/11/06. Cllr Wigglesworth replied at 13:54 but my records show that you have not replied yet.

Given that I am constructing my strategy for the presentation of my case to the regulatory Committee, and any appeal in the Sheriff Court, I would ask that you do so as soon as you possibly can, taking into account my following request.

You will recall the case of Daniel Wencker, the criminal restaurateur who was jailed for six months for resetting stolen alcohol. Also that former Lord Provost, Eric Milligan spoke eloquently on Mr Wencker's behalf at the meeting of the Licensing Board to decide whether he should be allowed to retain his licence, despite objections from the Chief Constable who argued that he was not a fit and proper person to retain his licence. You will also recall that the strength of Mr Milligan's endorsement of Mr Wencker was clearly instrumental in him retaining his restaurant licence.

In view of this obviously successful strategy, I therefore reiterate my previous request for your support of my application, and would further ask whether you would add the weight of your recommendation by speaking on my behalf to the Regulatory Committee - in view of my near 15 years service as a taxi driver in Edinburgh, your placing on record that Edinburgh's economy is booming and the fact that no new taxi licences have been issued for around 4 years - and recommending that my licence application should be granted.

So, as my ward councillor, will you assist my case before the Regulatory Committee?

I look forward to your earliest reply.

Regards

Jim Taylor

bet Mr Anderson can wait for next years Election so he can get a new email address

Problem is, I have the homing instincts of an exocet

Dear Cllr Wigglesworth

I look forward to reading the forthcoming Draft Taxi Action Plan.

Given the current state of the taxi trade in Edinburgh, we will particularly be looking for it to address the following matters.

First, it will need to acknowledge that the artificial shortage of taxi licences caused by the council's quantity control policy is manifestly wrong in our free market, free enterprise economy.

The plan will need to cater for the removal of quantity controls from the issuing of licences, to be replaced with both the current and proposed quality controls for drivers, along the lines of the London Model, which is applied in over 70% of other local authorities in the UK (Aberdeen being the most recent in Scotland), and which has the tacit approval of the Office of Fair Trading.

Second, the transfer of plates for ludicrous sums of money (now exceeding £50,000), while not provided for in the legislation, simply causes hardship for drivers, penalises customers with higher tariffs and invests control with a minority who usurp it for their own interests.

The plan will need to support the removal of artificial plate "values", to be replaced in a de-restricted market with the movement of all licences through the direct control of the council, subject only to the charges legitimately levied by the council.

Third, the council recently received 41 licence applications, 6 of which are the subject of court appeal proceedings, some of which were outrightly refused based on flawed survey information, and some of which were withdrawn after the council "coerced" those applicants to withdraw their application or lose their whole licence fee deposit.

The plan will need to reinstate these licence applications, grant them in accordance with the procedures laid down in the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, and according to the clearly defined procedure specifically detailed by Sheriffs Liddle and Horsburgh, and Sheriff Principal Bowen, throughout the current appeals cases which, if not justly dealt with under this plan, will come before the court again in coming months.

There are currently 99 individuals on the "Interested Parties List". Notwithstanding the illegality of this, and being arbitrarily and unfairly closed by the council to other legitimate applicants, these people have waited patiently on this list, in good faith, for up to 15 years. This is disgraceful, particularly at a time when the rising demand, which should have seen their applications granted, has been met by a continually increasing private hire fleet.

The plan will need to issue licences to those on the list forthwith.

Finally, there has been a considerable effort made in campaigning for justice in the taxi trade. We believe that our campaign is a just one and will continue it until all of the above aims are met in full. Only this will bring a satisfactory resolution to the campaign.

Seems fair enough for me.

I suspect your fellow cabbies will be more than supportive of such a reasonable plan.

_________________
IDFIMH

Still no response. But Cllr Anderson did write to me to explain why he doesn't forward chain emails, however deserving they are.

What does this say about the urgency and importance of his constituent's interests?

Dear Cllr Wigglesworth

I have received several reports from cabbies who have telephoned the licensing department to ask about the procedures for applying for a new taxi licence, only to be advised that they would perhaps lose a significant part of their licence application fee in the event the application was refused.

You will be aware that the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 does not preclude licence applications.

I therefore require that you reveal to me who advised the staff in the licensing department to iterate to licence applicants that they may lose their deposit.

You should be aware that I intend to raise this matter with the Sheriff, in respect of the council's conduct in the way it deals with taxi trade matters, when the matter of my application for a taxi operator's licence comes before the court. I therefore expect your timeous response to my question.

Yours sincerely

Jim Taylor

Reply received. But no answers given.

Seems the council believes that democracy means that councillors don't hav eto answer questions. They get the council solicitor's clerk to pen the blanket non-answer.

We're having fun here guys. What they fail to realise is that the way the council conducts its business, its very own democratic deficit, is the sword upon which they will impale themselves.

Watch this space.

Just keep banging away.

_________________
IDFIMH

FAO Cllr Wigglesworth
Convenor
Regulatory Committee
City of Edinburgh Council

1st January 2007

Dear Cllr Wigglesworth

Re:- Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (The Act)
666maxblack LLP
Application of 27th November 2006 for a taxi operator’s licence

I refer to my above application and the council’s response from Gill Lindsay dated 21st December 2006. Please confirm that you are aware of this correspondence, that it is issued on your behalf as Convenor of the Regulatory Committee (RC) and that you are prepared to answer to it.

I write to you as the elected Councillor charged with responsibility for dealing with taxi matters and require that you answer directly the following questions, pertaining to both my application and the political matters as a consequence of it.

Please note that in the event you delegate your response to my legitimate request for information from you to another council official, and unless you advise me specifically that you have no direct knowledge and input to that response, it will be deemed to have emanated directly from yourself and you will be required to answer to it in the appropriate forum(s) at the appropriate time(s), with no opportunity to claim lack of knowledge of the details of it.

As I have substantially made requests for much of the following information previously, please arrange for all information to be made available to me within ten days, either in hard copy or through clear address links to where it may be found on your web site, and certainly well in advance of my application being considered by the RC.

Please note that this request for information will form part of my overall application evidence and in future will be highlighted and drawn upon in the appropriate forum(s).

1. Historic demand surveys.

1.1 Please forward to me copies of the invitations to tender for both the Halcrow and the Jacob Survey along with a copy of both reports. Please also provide me with copies of the minutes of meetings and Director of Corporate Service’s Reports associated with these demand surveys.

2. Contemporary demand measurement.

Gill Lindsay writes that “The council may issue further licences if at any time it is satisfied there is significant unmet demand for the services of taxis”

2.1 Please advise me what definition the council uses to denote “significant unmet demand”?

2.2 Who is involved in surveying demand for taxis in Edinburgh?

2.3 Which independent consulting body is/will be involved?

2.4 What criteria have been/will be set as the purpose of the survey?

2.5 What timescales have been/will be set?

2.6 What methodology has been/will be employed and why was this
chosen?

2.7 What quantitative and qualitative data has been/will be
produced since the Jacob survey to indicate demand levels?

2.8 What demand indicators have been used by the council to ascertain this?

2.9 What formula has been/will be employed to assess the data?

2.10 What decision taking process has been undertaken by the council using this data to ensure that supply matches demand for taxi services in Edinburgh? Please supply full copies of minutes and associated reports.

Please note that these questions are re-iterated because the council has failed to answer them adequately previously and they are clearly pertinent to my licence application.

3. Interested Parties list.

Gill Lindsay states, “Furthermore, there is a list of persons interested in obtaining a taxi licence and if further licences were to be issued it is likely that this list would be taken into consideration”.

3.1 Re-iterating a previous request for information concerning the interested parties list, please advise me precisely where in the Act councils are granted permission to operate an “Interested Parties List”, which differs from a waiting list in that it has been closed for some time and discriminates against further applicants?

3.2 Please also advise me why it is not council policy for all applicants whose licence applications have been refused by the council to automatically be entered onto the Interested Parties List?

3.3 I require you to provide me with a clear reference to the chapter and section of the Act the council is using to apply this?

3.4 Please advise me when the list was inaugurated and provide me with an accurate account of when names were entered onto it and when they were removed, and how many currently remain on it?

3.5 Please also advise on what hierarchical basis names were removed from it following grant of a licence at the outset (e.g. first on, first off), and what basis for removal exists now?

3.6 Please also confirm whether or not the current order of the names on the list is the same as that when they were added to it and, if not, why not? Please provide precise references to the Act which permitted this change?

3.7 Please advise me, with precise references to the Act, where the council is permitted to place a previous licence application from an “Interested Parties List”, which has already been refused, before that of a current application which is being processed?

3.8 Please also provide me with details of the number of taxi and private hire vehicle licences operating at the time of the list’s inauguration and the precise number operating at the date of 31st December 2006?

4. Processing of my licence application.

Gill Lindsay writes, “Your application will nevertheless be processed and you will be advised of a decision in due course. I also take the opportunity to remind you that the fee you have paid in respect of this application is non-refundable.”

Under the Act councils are required to “consider” a licence application within three months and “grant or refuse” within six months.

4.1 Please advise me that you are aware of this and that my application will be processed according to this timetable? Please advise me of the precise timeline details of this timetable?

4.2 In the Taxi Licensing Officer’s report to the Regulatory Committee of 9th November 2005 it was reported that 17 of the 41 applications were withdrawn. I understand that a number of these had a substantial portion of their application fee returned. Please confirm how many this applied to, how much was refunded to each individual and why this was not offered across the board?

4.3 It would appear from the tenet of Gill Lindsay’s letter that my application will be refused and I will not be granted the same opportunity as other applicants to make representations to the Regulatory Committee in support of my application. Will you confirm whether this is so?

4.4 Indeed, will I be granted an opportunity to make such representation to the Committee to demonstrate why their dependence on the Jacob Survey to deny licences is flawed, given that it is historical by nature, factually incorrect and omits key demand indicators, yet it will be used to determine the outcome of my application although the Act requires that accurate and up to date information be available at the time of my application?

4.5 Will the council seriously consider this evidence with an open mind? If given clear proof of the Survey’s flaws, coupled with the highlighting of inadequate survey information since, along with historic and new demand indicator information not contained in the Jacob survey, all clearly pertaining to the precise situation at the date of my application, will the RC, and the council, grant me my licence despite the previously stated policy of limiting taxi numbers to the current 1260?

4.6 Cllr Wigglesworth, will you confirm that you will personally chair the meeting of the RC which will consider my application?

5. Transfer of taxi licence plates.

5.1 Cllr Wigglesworth, please confirm that under the Act, taxi licence plates are non-transferable and that they have no intrinsic commercial tradeable value.

5.2 Please also confirm directly whether you specifically, as Convenor of the RC, and the other committee members in general, are aware that plates are currently transferring for considerable sums of money through the council’s policy of “Incorporation”.

I thank you for your direct and timeous response within ten days to these requests for information.



Yours sincerely

Jim Taylor