Labour pledge to fight taxi chaos
LABOUR WILL DO SOMETHING ABOUT THE TAXI CHAOS BLIGHTING UK TOWNS AND CITIES SAYS GMB UNION - THE UNION FOR TAXIS AND MINICAB DRIVERS
For the first time in living memory a political party has given a commitment to the taxi and private hire industry drivers and the customer. [1]
The taxi and minicab trades currently employ over 350,000 thousand people in the UK.
No other political party has given a commitment to help this valuable industry and which has been blighted in recent years by a lack of regulation, a lack of national standards and disastrous decisions by the Conservative Government who created an uneven playing field and a rigged market.
Mick Rix GMB National Officer for Taxi and Professional Drivers said:
"The Tories have ignored the fact that regulations covering the taxi and private hire sector are out of date and they have consistently failed to act.
"Drivers are treated shabbily and are denied employment rights, and passengers are given virtually no guarantee of safety.
"The Labour Party manifesto commitment aims to change the culture of a 'wild west' free for all created under the current Conservative Government, and which aims to give drivers and passengers the respect and national standards they duly deserve.
"GMB urges all drivers and customers of the trades to vote Labour and help put this manifesto commitment into practice."
Andy McDonald Labour Shadow Transport Secretary said:
"The current system is complex, outdated and in need of an upgrade: passengers don’t have a guarantee of safety or quality, drivers are without proper employment rights and operators are competing against one another in a rigged market.
"The Tories have ignored the fact that taxi and private hire vehicle regulations are out of date and have failed to act."
ENDS
Contact: GMB Press Office on 07958 156846 or at press.office@gmb.org.uk
Notes to editors
[1] Labour Manifesto: Labour is on the side of cab drivers, the travelling public and operators.
After consulting with all parts of the industry, including companies, trade unions and consumer groups, we will reform the legislation governing taxi and private hire services, introducing national standards to guarantee safety and accessibility, updating regulations to keep pace with technological change and ensuring a level playing field between operators.
