Semtex Comments On The Uddin Case. "is It Really What The Public Wants Mr Daniels?"

This of course, is the reality of what our trade continue to scream about ! Who would you think is to blame for this tragic outcome ?

The illegal mini cab tout Matab Uddin who despite previous convictions for touting in the past, had reoffended and caused this tragic waste of a young man's life ? The Police, for their service who notoriously and generally list mini cab touting as a low priority crime, and therefore respond with inadequate legal enforcement ? The fatally injured Oliver Farrell himself, for knowingly getting into a vehicle that had not been legally hailed or pre-booked, and opting for a more dangerous and sadly fatal option ? Or Transport For London themselves, for continually failing to provide vigilant enforcement for the compliance of the licences that they sell like toffee apples from a market stall ?

In this sobering case, it appears that Uddin was an unlicensed tout, and therefore the very virtue that he had no licence to comply with in the first place, would legally exonerate TFL.

I believe that TFL, The Police Service and indeed the public themselves, should all take a portion of blame what has occurred here.

I also believe that with the massive influx of zero professionally trained drivers such as Uber, these incidents will be on the rise.

I have always said that it is only when fatalities occur, that the authorities will take notice.

As a family man with kids of Oliver Farrell's age, I can naturally imagine what heartbreak, devastation and eternal grief this death will cause his poor family.

But unless TFL, and the Police Service who constantly display a blasé unprofessional enforcement deployment attitude to mini cab touting, start to up their game, serious consequences such as these will be regular.

As for the travelling public who repeatedly accuse the professionally trained London Taxi Trade of being too expensive............I would bet my life on it that the grief suffering family of Oliver Farrell, would have paid anything to turn back the clocks, and seen their loved one hail down the world famous yellow light of a Professional, Safe, London Taxi Driver on that fateful night.

As I have said a million times before, you pays your money and takes your choice. If you want cheap and ill trained, then go ahead and roll the dice with your Uber ride. Its your choice, your decision and your pulse you are risking, nobody else's.

The London Black Cab Trade haven't lasted 400 years because we are too expensive. We have survived the ebbs and flows of economic turmoil simply because the yellow light on top of our cabs represents fairness, expertise, soundness, safety, reliability and platinum standard professionalism.

London is awash with illegally touting mini cabs every night of every week of every month. The harm that it is causing isn't just a tragedy to the reputation and image of our once great capital city, it is incredibly dangerous and an inherent failure to protect our travelling public.

Leon Daniels once replied to our concerns by saying "it's what the public wants."

Is it really Mr Daniels ? I wonder if Oliver Farrell's family would agree with that this morning ? 

Semtex.

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