🤫𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐓𝐟𝐋’𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞-𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐨𝐫𝐲.

 

While TfL are busy passing out 4-500 new Private Hire Drivers every week, bringing their numbers to over 100,000…and while the Licensed Taxi Trade has been almost cut by a third in just a few years

2014/15 vs 2023

Total drivers 25,232 vs 18,391 (-26%)

GB's 21,724 - 16,399 (-25%)

YB's 3,508 - 1,994 (-43%)

Total taxis 22,500 - 15,056 (-33%)

PH numbers same period.

Drivers 65,656 vs 100,318 (+53%)

Vehicles 52,811 vs 89,779 (+70%)

This is where we are with current policies.

TfL are now alleging that Licensed Taxi drivers are not safety aware…. They are demanding all drivers take and pass a new safety, equality and regulatory understanding assessment ⬇️

I'm writing to remind you about our consultation on proposals to implement the DfT's Statutory.

Standards, and improve safety for taxi and private hire passengers in London.

We are proposing changes to further improve safety and safeguarding for all passengers, especially children and vulnerable adults.

The proposals include changes to the taxi driver licensing requirements including:

*   All licensed taxi drivers must pass a new safety, equality and regulatory understanding assessment

*   All taxi drivers must obtain a Certificate of Good Conduct to cover any periods of three or more continuous months they have spent outside the UK since they were 18 years old

*   All taxi drivers must register with the DBS Update service and we will carry out DBS checks every six months

The consultation is open until 12 May 2023 so if you haven't responded yet you still have time to do so. 

Go to our consultation website to find out more about all of our proposals and for details of how you can respond to the consultation.

Yours sincerely…..

𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐧 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐦𝐚𝐧

𝐃𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐋𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

(Would this be the same Helen Chapman who at a senior reps meeting dismissed the 13,000 fake DBS criminal record certificates exposed in the Sun, saying eventually in 3 years times they would have to submit real DBS checks???)

Anyone who thought the ultimate agenda of Project Horizon was just a conspiracy theory, or in the case of a certain trade representative group, just rumour and fake news…..TfL posted this statement on their TfL traffic news Twitter accounts 

⬇️

“Hi there, unfortunately taxis, cabs and Hackney Carriages are aclassified as private vehicles for hire with a Private Hire Vehicle License issued by TfL”. 

TfL already believe there is now a one-tier service. Helped along by apps where Taxis work alongside minicabs. 

Drivers have been split into ‘haves and have-nots’.

Older drivers who only wanted to work a few hours, now can’t afford to do the job anymore. 

With trade representation more fragmented now than at any point in its history, in my opinion, the writing is on the wall. 

Call me a doom and gloomer

Call me a conspiracy theorist 

Call me the teller of fake news and a rumours monger. 

But I have been telling you what their agenda is/was for over 13 years. 

“When they came for me, there was no one left to fight for me”.

𝐓𝐀𝐗𝐈 𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐒 𝐄𝐗𝐓𝐑𝐀 𝐁𝐈𝐓: 

A certain department of TfL, not content with having my original Anderson Shelter blog and my original Taxi leaks Facebook page removed, after a post that explained about the 4000 missing blank licenses that disappeared during the move from Penton Street to Palestra , are now recently getting certain past posts removed from my New Taxi Leaks blog going back as far as 2011. 

Posts that mentioned a US based minicab app, a past commissioner who bedded a sex worker, the failed engagement policy, and any post mentioning Horizon. 

Why do you think they are doing this ???

Here are just a few of the post subject headings, from recent emails sent to me from Google Blogger 

* Bill Gate, why the silence!

* Fit And Proper Or A Bunch Of Criminals ?? 

* Uber Faces Criminal Probe Over GodsEye Software, Used for Evading Authorities

* Still Blue Peter, still denying Horizon ? 

* Addison Lee, No Prosecution over Rugby World Cup Liveries, Yet licensed Taxi Drivers Reported For Unauthorised Signage.

* It’s not Uber Killing The Trade, Its The Engagement Policy.

* Open Letter To Shaun Bailey, Andrew Boff And Gregg Hands ...by Jim Thomas'

Just a few of the posts that have recently been unpublished or hidden. 

“𝐁𝐈𝐋𝐋-𝐆𝐀𝐓𝐄” 𝐄𝐗𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐃: 

I’ll never forget the panic on director of LTPH John Mason’s voice, after he ran from Palestra to address members of the RMT's Taxi branch committee at George Vyse’s office at Great Suffolk Street. At that time, I was the ranks and highways officer for the RMT and was there at this committee meeting. 

He wanted to know how the RMT had come into possession of the information, that 4000 blank Taxi licenses had gone missing in the move from Penton Street, to Palestra. He was visibly shaken that the news had got out.

We were at the time hearing allegations, that owners were snatching back Taxis from drivers who were not keeping up with their required payments, only to find when reporting to TfL, no such numbered licence had been issued. 

Allegations abounded that the fake licenses had numbers of badges, lost or surrendered by retiring drivers (Information that could only come from TfL). 

The issue first came to light, after an extremely bad accident in Victoria between a TX2 and a Toyota minicab. Three elderly American female passengers were cut from the wreckage and hospitalised. 

I personally attended the scene and while taking photos, was told by a senior police officer, that the driver of the Taxi had done a runner. The officer asked me to try to get a message out, for the drive to come forward and give himself up.

It later transpired that the vehicle had been hired from a Taxi garage in Hammersmith, using a fake bill. He was never traced.