UCG letter to Sadiq Khan demanding action following the Sun exposure of corrupt GPs selling PH medical certificates.
Dear Mr Khan
As I am sure you are aware The Sun recently printed an article by Jake Ryan exposing alleged corruption concerning medicals for Private Hire and Uber drivers.
Three GPs are said to have taken bribes to supply an ‘all clear’ medical report based on ,at best, a paucity of medical tests and in one case ‘No tests at all’
This ,as Im sure you will agree ,has put many members of the public at risk and must be thoroughly investigated as a matter of great urgency.
It is beyond comprehension how TFL has allowed this to happen . When I, as a licensed taxi driver, have my triennial Medical Examination it must be with a GP who has known me for at least 12 months, however it would appear that a PH driver may go to any Doctor ,even one who does not know the applicants medical history and leave with an ‘all clear’ certificate.
On December 5th 2015 Muhiddin Mire attacked passengers at Leytonstone underground station and cut he throat of Lyle Zimmerman ,an innocent bystander.
It transpired that Mr Mire had a long history of mental illness and yet was granted a PH licence by TFL and consequently worked for Uber.
After much stalling and refusing to answer a UCG members question as to whether Mr Mire had undergone a medical check prior to licensing ,TFL eventually but blandly replied that he ‘had a medical assessment with a registered practitioner ‘. The Doctors exposed by Mr Ryan were ‘registered practitioners’ and it begs the question did Mr Mire visit one of the corrupt GPs ? and were the GP vetted by TFL before being allowed to issue a medical certificate to the standard of the DVLA 2 requirements ?
You will recall that some Topographical Test Centres were closed down after the,shall we say, less than rigorous testing of applicants was exposed and all those who received a PH license through those disgraced centres were required to re-sit the tests with a large number failing ! How many PH drivers would now fail a full medical assessment carried out by a GP whose integrity cannot be bought fo £50 ?
It would appear that a full investigation is needed into the whole PH Licensing Outsourcing fiasco . It is ‘not fit for purpose ‘, which coincidentally is the same phrase leveled at TFL by Val Shawcross and the GLA last year and yet the same ‘not fit for purpose ‘ staff remain in place. !
The United Cabbies Group would like to know what you, as Mayor and TFL, as regulator intend to do about this appalling situation as revealed by Mr Ryan
Will you confirm that ALL PH drivers who have received medical certificates from the GPs identified by Mr Ryan will have their licences suspended pending a medical by a GP who has known the applicant for a minimum of 12 months and if they have not been resident in Britain for twelve months , by a GP approved by the General Medical Council or Royal College of General Practitioners ?
Secondly, will you confirm that any PH driver suspected of complicity in obtaining a medical certificate by deception will have his license revoked with immediate effect and prosecuted.
Finally , TFL have not yet revealed the most recent Sexual Assault figures , even though they were due for publication on Sept 20th. I must request that you direct TFL to release the data without delay.
Please let us know , within 7 days , of your intended course of action to address the above concerns.
Should we receive no reply within 7 days we will have no alternative but to ballot our members for a vote on a return to sustained direct action.
The previous administration abrogated their responsibility to public safety and were branded ‘ Woefully Inadequate by Val Shawcross and the GLA.
The finest cab trade in the world is fast losing confidence in the present regulator as are the general public.
We now look to you to offer not just an Adequate regulatory body but an Exemplary one .
Kind regards
United Cabbies Group
