Uber licence: Statement from Andrew Boff AM

Posted by GLA Conservatives in News   Share2017

Sep
29

– Mayor refuses to renew private hire firm’s licence
– Puts 40,000 people out of work with ruling
– Decision causes ‘major reputational damage’ to London

Commenting on the Mayor of London’s decision not to renew Uber’s licence to operate in the capital, London Assembly member Andrew Boff said:

"This is a hugely damaging decision by Sadiq Khan that will effectively put 40,000 people out of work at the click of a finger.

"The Mayor consistently tells us London is open but in shutting down the operations of an innovative market leader like Uber he has caused immense reputational damage to our city as a global business hub.

"With 3.5million registered users – almost half the city's adult population – Uber has shown to be providing a hugely beneficial service to Londoners.

"Sadiq Khan has ignored their needs and instead believed the smears and propaganda propagated by Uber's rivals.

"Yes there are elements of the industry that need tweaking, yes there needs to be a reduction of bureaucracy for black cab drivers, but snuffing out the competition at the expense of thousands of employees and millions of customers is not the solution."

On the issue of safety, he added: “All allegations around passenger safety, especially those alleging assault, have to be taken seriously and referred to the police but I would expect the same standard to apply to all operators.

“In addition, TfL must answer questions about why its background checks on licence applicants appear to be failing. Uber provides the platform but it is TfL that conducts checks on the drivers.”