Ken's Cabby Diversity Roadshow

By Rob Last edited 220 months ago
Ken's Cabby Diversity Roadshow
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Ken Livingstone wants more Black, Asian and "people from ethnic minorities" to become cabbies, and to prove it he's putting on a roadshow.

According to this London Assembly press release only "one in 20 existing taxi drivers is from Black, Asian and ethnic minorities, compared to nearly a third of London’s population. Only one per cent of current drivers are Asian and 2.4 per cent are Black."

So, in order to ensure that "the cab trade is more representative of London’s diverse communities" Ken has organised a series of roadshows along with Transport for London’s Public Carriage Office to encourage 'minority groups' to take the first step in what Ed Thompson, the Taxi and Private Hire Director, calls "a promising career".

Is it just us or does anyone else find this a bit weird? Call us cynical but as soon as anyone starts advertising for people of a certain colour to join their profession alarm bells start going off.

Plus we can't help but think there's some connection here to Ken's ongoing war with illegal cab firms. We'd be willing to bet that the ratio of Black and Asian drivers working in that area is a great deal higher than for the legitimate firms.

After all, if there's an imbalance in the cab driving community surely it's the lack of women in the profession, so where's the recruitment drive aimed at them?

Last Updated 15 November 2005