Is it all already set in stone and are the Law Commission just going through the motions?

On this link, http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthr ... ?t=1460446 I found the following post;

B329 - London Hackney Carriage (Repeal) Bill 2010

B329 - London Hackney Carriage (Repeal) Bill 2010, Government

An Act to abolish the London Hackney Carriage Act 1843 and all legislation pertaining to regulations and statutory provisions for London Taxis and Hackneys otherwise contemporarily known as ‘Black Taxicabs’.

BE IT ENACTED by The Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Commons in this present Parliament assembled, in accordance with the provisions of the Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

1 Statutory repeals

(1) The following Statutes are hereby repealed:
(a) London Hackney Carriage Act 1843
(b) Town Police Clauses Act 1847
(c) Metropolitan Public Carriage Act 1869
(d) London Cab Act 1896
(e) London Cab and Stage Carriage Act 1907
(f) London Cab Act 1968

(2) The following Statutory Instruments are hereby repealed:
(a) London Cab Order 1934
(b) London Cab Order 1973
(c) London Cab Order 1992
(d) London Cab Order 1995

(3) Sections 45-80 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 are hereby repealed.

2 Commencement

(1) The provisions contained within this Act shall come into force in April 2012

3 Short Title

(1) This Act may be cited as the London Hackney Carriage (Repeal) Act 2010


There is further information on this link too;

http://boardreader.com/thread/B329_Lond ... Xveye.html

Wheelchair safety in Taxis - what you MUST know and your council should clarify their position

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Richmondshire cabbies prepare to mount legal action (deregulation)

TAXI drivers are considering taking legal action against a council over its decision to deregulate the industry. Members of the trade have already passed a vote of no confidence in two council officers after Richmondshire District Council’s licensing committee decided to remove the limit on the number of taxi plates issued.

It is currently capped at 65 and the decision was made to allow more registered taxis to attract new business and encourage taxi drivers to provide a better service in rural areas. But outraged members of Richmond Independent Drivers’ Association (RIDA) and the Taxi Drivers’ Association say deregulation will result in fewer taxis in rural areas and at quiet times of the week.

Members of the two organisation met at the Traveau Sports Club, in Catterick Garrison, where it was decided they would gather material to launch a legal action against the decision. Grant Curphey, from the Independent Drivers’ Association, told the meeting: “In Fleetwood, near Blackpool, they deregulated their taxi industry and they went from having 105 vehicles to more than 1,000 in less than 12 months. All the new people who came in had other jobs and just put plates on their vehicles and came out at busy times. “The professional taxi drivers couldn’t make a living, so they left. So they ended up with virtually no taxis from Monday to Thursday. If this goes ahead, in 18 months we will all be out of a job.”

George Pearson, chairman of RIDA, told the meeting that local taxi drivers were not consulted over any of the recent changes affecting their industry. He said an independent Unmet Demand survey they had commissioned – which showed there wasn’t a demand for more taxis in rural areas – was not properly taken into consideration.

Head of regulatory services at Hambleton District Council, Maurice Cann, said the council had sent a letter to all taxi drivers inviting them to attend a meeting on April 5, which was attended by 17 drivers. He said: “It’s quite wrong to suggest there wasn’t any consultation.

In terms of the decision the council has made, it has considered the Unmet Demand survey and it was fully debated in public. Then a majority decision was made to deregulate the industry. This is in line with government advice and best practice.”

Taxi Driver In Court (Wheelchair)

A Taxi driver has appeared in court accused of failing to secure a passenger’s wheelchair.
Mark Smith, aged 51, allegedly did not take all reasonable precautions to ensure the safety of the passenger in his hackney carriage on February 15.
Smith of Clittaford Road, Southway, pleaded not guilty to breaching a Plymouth City byelaw
Plymouth magistrates adjourned the case until October 10.

Published by The Herald, 29 September 2011

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ts like this your honor, some brainless wide boys at the council said if I want to drive a cab, I must buy one of those TX things
So off I went and obliged him at £32,000, only to find out that a full sized wheelchair does not fit into the bit where its meant to, as per the Liverpool case your honor,cab to small.
I could have refused to take the customer but they would have complained to the council, In hindsight I should have as we would have nearly the same scenario, me in front of you for refusing to take them.
My customer asked why is there no saloons available as taxis, as they prefer them, I told them the idiots at the council said I must drive this heap of she-it.

I find you not guilty, and yes you can now go and buy that nice new Skoda Superb and have many happy years driving it

The Taxi Tax Credits debate

 

 The debate below is taken from TDO, where it has been suggested that Tax Credits are simply a subsidy being used to keep low skilled workers from unemployment figures<

 

The state of the trade in many areas of the UK is so oversubscribed that earning a living, even working ridiculously long hours of 12-16 hours daily for 6-7 days most week is almost impossible. That's for the genuine cabbie or scabbie who wants to work.

But now there is a huge, enormous army of cabbies and scabbies all around the country, for whom this oversubscribed situation is 'Manna from heaven'. These are the unscrupulous benefit scroungers who knowing that a living cannot be earned, don't even bother to work a full week and are happy to do just 16-20 hours a week and some weeks not even working at all, because they know that Working Tax Credits and other benefits will more than see them through.

The job in many areas is now meaningless, but there will always be many that will exploit these situation, because the benefits system allows such practices.

But if the trade was not as oversubscribed as it is, there would be little scope for these Working Tax Credit, because questions would be asked if others in the trade were constantly posting good earnings that prevented such benefit claims.

And I would guess that benefit claims from cabbies and scabbies run into a £billion or two every year.

This is a sad reflection of the Trade today, However this is happening in the Cities of Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester. I fully expect it is happening in many other places. How did it get to this state?

(low entry criteria) is one suggestion, what do you think?