ACROSS THE UK
The Licensed Taxi Operators Association (LTOA), a group of private hire taxi operators from across NI, came together in summer 2020 to represent the industry to the DfI. The LTOA said: “There has been no specific grant fund- ing for taxi operators at any time during the pandemic and while a very small number of operators were able to avail of some general support linked to hospitality closures at the end of 2020, there has been nothing available for operators or for drivers since then, despite the ongoing reduction in business as a result of the NI Executives current hospitality restrictions.
“Like hospitality, drivers and operators rely on a busy festive season to carry them through the subsequent lean winter months, and without some direct financial support for drivers and operators, it is likely that many of them will no longer be in the industry come the summer months.
“For a region that is staking its economic future on hospi- tality, tourism and foreign investment, the lack of support by Government for a sector which is vital in realising these ambitions is both disappointing and disturbing but unfortu- nately not surprising given the current Infrastructure Minister’s approach to the taxi industry during her tenure.”
SCOTLAND
On Wednesday 29 December the App and Couriers Union (ADCU) organised a protest in Glasgow which saw dozens of private hire drivers from several organisations, including the NPHTA, sitting in their vehicles around George Square and surrounding streets with signs attached reading ‘urgent help needed’ and ‘another nail in the coffin’ as they stopped traffic and beeped their horns.
Eddie Grice, the Glasgow Chair of ADCU, said: “We are demanding to be heard. We put our request across and it has been ignored. Our trade is suffering again. Drivers are suffer- ing again. This protest is about making sure we are listened to and engaged with and about securing support for hard- working drivers at risk of losing their livelihoods yet again.
“Some business support is coming down for certain sectors, but we have been totally excluded again. Our trade relies on hospitality and people moving around. With restrictions coming back we will see many drivers going bust or simply abandoning the trade. We are requesting that Rishi Sunak reintroduce the support scheme for the self-employed and that the Scottish Government provides industry-specific support to private hire and taxi drivers..”
A view mirrored by Murray Fleming, General Secretary of the Scottish Taxi Federation, who said the sector was facing an “ongoing battle to survive”. He said it relied heavily on hospitality during the festive season and had seen a
JANUARY 2022
“massive downturn” at what would normally be a busy time. Mr Fleming stated: “We will be lobbying the Government, along with other trade bodies, to get some form of financial support.” However, he said he was “not overly optimistic”.
Support has been received from some MSPs who raised their concerns at recent virtual sessions of the Scottish Parliament.
South Scotland Conservative MSP, Sharon Dowey, said: “Although our pubs, nightclubs and hotels require support because of the direct effects of the government’s restric- tions, many other businesses, such as taxi drivers and those in the hospitality supply chain, are also losing income at what should be their busiest time of year. Will the First Minister reassure me that all businesses that have been affected by restrictions will be able to access government grant funding?”
In response Nicola Sturgeon stated that she recognised that taxi drivers suffered ‘considerably’ due to restrictions and that a decision on allocating the remaining £168 million funding would be made in the coming days following con- sultation with affected sectors. She said: “We know they are one part of the economy that suffers considerably from fewer people going
out...they are very much in our minds as we reach decisions.”
Meanwhile former First Minister, Alex Salmond, has also demanded immediate help. He said: “Unlike other small busi- nesses, they have received very little compensation for loss of earnings and such support as they have received from councils has been patchy, and in some cases derisory, with many PH and taxi drivers forced out of business altogether. Private hire and taxi drivers have been the poor relations during the pandemic receiving little or no support. It is assumed that because they do not have premises, that PH and taxi drivers do not have the same costs, but they have significant overheads without the business rates and other reliefs available to other small businesses.”
BREAKING NEWS
Just as we go to press, Nicola Sturgeon has just announced up to £28 million in grant support will be allocated to taxi and private hire drivers and operators. This extra business support will be made available through local councils.
PHTM & NPHTA MAKE AN URGENT PLEA TO THE GOVERNMENTS OF OUR FOUR NATIONS ON BEHALF OF ALL OUR OPERATORS AND DRIVERS DO NOT: IGNORE US, NEGLECT US OR FORGET US OUR INDUSTRY NEEDS MORE SUPPORT NOW
BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE! 7
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