Minicab drivers protest outside TfL headquarters over ‘institutional racism’
Minicab drivers have launched a surprise flash demo at Transport for London’s (TfL) headquarters today to protest against “institutional racism”.
The United Private Hire Drivers (UPHD) branch of the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB) has accused TfL of pushing policies that have added “crushing new costs” to drivers such as regulations including additional testing, the removal of congestion charge exemption and the recently introduced Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) charges to cut emissions.
The union says the changes hit the 117,000 ethnic minority drivers the hardest and allow companies such as Uber, Addison Lee and Green Tomato Cars to exploit workers.
James Farrar, national chair of UPHD, said: Discrimination and exploitation are two sides of the same coin with one enabling the other. Time and again, we have asked the Mayor and TfL to take meaningful action to end sweatshop conditions for minicab drivers in the capital. But instead of helping us they take our money and punish us more.”
TfL was taken to court last week by the Licensed Private Hire Car Association (LPHCA), a minicab trade body that is objecting to the the increase in operator licence fees brought in last year.
It says increased fees for operators could “wipe out” operators, “leaving the futures of many drivers, industry suppliers and others connected to the industry in jeopardy”.
TfL announced last year that it was increasing charges for private hire operators for the costs of licensing, compliance and enforcement to reflect the growth of the private hire industry and the costs required to regulate it.
Read more: London minicab firms threaten TfL with legal action over licence costs
The number of privately licensed drivers soared by 78 per cent from 65,000 to 160,000 last year, while the number of vehicles increased from 50,000 to 88,000 over the same period.
TfL expects the cost of enforcement alone to reach £30m – up from a previous estimate of £4m – over the next five years. With the costs of licensing and compliance taken into account, the total reaches £209m over the same period.
A TfL spokesperson said of the court case: “The licence fee changes reflect the increased cost of regulation and associated enforcement activity that has been driven by the huge growth in the private hire industry.
“We consider the changes to fees to be proportionate and will be defending our position.”
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