Graeme Stephen, chairman of Dundee Taxi Association, was responding to comments by Lord Provost John Letford at the start of today’s licensing committee in the city chambers.

Mr Letford, who chairs the committee, told around 100 drivers who packed into the council’s main meeting room, he did not want to see a taxi “war” developing.

But he made it clear the drivers, who had earlier staged a demonstration in City Square, could not address the meeting.

He acknowledged the trade was not happy with the committee but he, too, was “disappointed in a lot of people.”

The drivers are unhappy about several strands of council policy relating to their trade.

These include a decision not to place a limit on the number of taxis operating in the city and what is seen by some as failure to take action against private hire companies — in particular 203020 — which they claim have allegedly breached the terms of their licences.

They have already threatened to take strike action unless something is done and could kick off their protest with a peak-time rolling roadblock through the city, which would cause massive disruption during rush hours.

Before the meeting got under way, Mr Letford addressed those in attendance and said, “I have to advise you if you don’t already know that we meet on a regular basis with the taxi liaison forum.

“We don’t make policy, but make recom-mendations for this committee to decide.

“A special meeting was called two weeks ago and we intend to have another special meeting as soon as possible.

“We have been addressing some of the problems, maybe not to the satisfaction of the trade, and will continue to do so.

“You are entitled to be here but there will be no exchanges or discussions.

“From the outset, there has been no indication from anybody to be here to speak on any subject.

“We do appreciate the conflict of the situation that exists in the city at the moment.

“I don’t want to see a “war” between taxi drivers (public hire) and private hire companies.”

Mr Stephen, who criticised Councillor Letford for not giving the taxi drivers even five minutes to address the meeting, said the trade was doing everything it could to keep a lid on a potentially volatile situation.

“It’s boiling up and boiling up and it will only boil so far before it goes over the edge.

“We are doing our best to stop this happening and we want everybody to remain with the law.

“We don’t want to do anything to hurt the public because they pay our wages.

“Unfortunately, if the council keeps pushing us and pushing us and they can’t come up with answers then it has already been agreed that there are different ways and means of taking action as a last resort.

“Strike action would be a last resort and how quickly we reach that last resort depends on how much this council pushes us.”

Mr Stephen said taxi representatives were prepared to briefly address the meeting and he was disappointed that they were not given the opportunity to do so.

He added, “I thought that we may have had at least five minutes to hear one or two representations, but the Lord Provost made it clear he was going to stick to the agenda.”

Mr Letford said in his initial address that suggestions about changes to the taxi situation would have to be made through the liaison forum.

Any decisions, he said, would be made “in the interests of the travelling public.”

The committee went on to approve two new private hire driver’s licences, four new private hire operator’s licences, 15 new taxi driver’s licences, the renewal of a taxi driver’s licence and a request to replace an existing white plate with a special events disc.

At the end of the meeting, the committee agreed to exclude the public and Press as they continued in private to discuss new taxi driver’s applications and drivers’ suspension hearings.

Earlier, taxi drivers held a mass demonstration in the City Square against the council’s operation of taxi licensing policies.

Around 100 members of the Dundee Taxi Association gathered outside the City Chambers before the licensing committee meeting.

The association called for the demonstration to highlight their concerns over what they see is a failure to enforce restrictions on the private hire car sector, in particular Dundee Private Hire, otherwise known as 203020.

Dundee Taxi Association chairman Graeme Stephen said today he was delighted with the turnout, given that most of those present had just come straight from nightshift.