ARGENTINA

Following widespread protests by taxi drivers that snarled traffic in Buenos Aires yesterday, the Uber ride app offices in downtown Buenos Aires were raided yesterday as the BA City government seeks to prohibit the service because it is not obeying the local Traffic Code.

City Judge Víctor Trionfetti ordered this week that the City take “all necessary measures” to suspend the activity of Uber, which became operational this week. The ruling led to yesterday’s raids, in which documentation was seized to prove that the company isn’t authorized to work in Argentina.

But the raid led to arguments between taxi-drivers and a Uber supporter at the company’s front door. The man defended the app, which led to a confrontation with angry cabbies — who finally calmed down.

Earlier in the day taxi-drivers carried out simultaneous protests in downtown Buenos Aires, the Aeroparque Metropolitan Airport and the Ezeiza Airport until noon, which lead to massive traffic jams — only made worse by heavy rain. BA City government Deputy Mayor Diego Santilli backed the protest as he said Uber is “clearly illegal.”

“Uber doesn’t meet the city’s transit regulations,” Santilli said. “We have a very good taxi system. Cabbies are praised by their users.”

Taxi drivers Federation head José Ibarra said protesting was “their last remaining option” and said Uber was ignoring the court’s resolution.

http://goo.gl/YxRHb2
------------------------------------

  CAB drivers are threatening to blockade part of Blackburn town centre over plans to scrap a taxi rank.

Taxi drivers boss Mohammed Younis has called on the council to abandon the plans to get rid of the zone in Church Street, outside Blackburn Market.

He has warned that if the borough presses ahead with proposals to remove the four bays his members are ready to mount a cab protest blockade on the highway.

The four vehicle rank was introduced in 2011 when the new market under The Mall opened.

 Now town hall bosses have indicated they are considering removing it after new ranks are brought in on Railway Road and one in Ainsworth Street near the Post Office.

But the drivers fear both are too far away from the market for their older and disabled customers, one of the staples of their town centre trade.

Malcolm Marsden, of Whittakers Butchers in the market hall, backs their concerns saying: “What are they thinking?”

Mr Younis, who chairs the Blackburn with Darwen Taxi Drivers Association and has been a driver in the borough for 40 years, said: “We accept this was a temporary measure when the market opened but it has proved its worth.

“It needs to be retained not just for us but for our many elderly and disabled customers.

“The new ranks proposed on Railway Road and at the top of end of the new bus station on Ainsworth Street are too far away for many of our passengers to get to easily.

“We are happy to see it cut to two bays or possibly introduce a new vehicle rank in the layby at the town centre end of the bus station at the junction of Salford and Railway Road.

“My members are very, very angry about this and are talking about mounting a cab blockade on Church Street outside the market if the council insists on going ahead.

“We are in discussions with the council and hope they will come to compromise as they did over a new points system for vehicle safety and maintenance.

“It’s not just about our income but about the needs of our older passengers and those customer who have mobility problems.”

 Blackburn with Darwen highways boss Phil Riley promised to postpone any implementation until the impact of the new bus station opening, scheduled for May 1, had been assessed.

Mr Marsden said: “Of course this rank should stay in view of the number of older people who use this market.

“They can’t walk any further with bags of shopping.”

Cllr Riley said: “We are still in discussions with the drivers.

“We will not implement any changes to the current ranks until the impact of the new bus station and other improvements to the town centre on footfall and traffic have been assessed.”

http://goo.gl/ciEgkz
---------------------------------------------
 GUILDFORD

A "PREDATORY" rapist has been jailed for six years for an attack on a woman after she left Royal Ascot last year.

Perveiz Aziz, of Carlisle Road, Slough, appeared at Guildford Crown Court yesterday for sentencing after being found guilty of rape and digital penetration offences against a woman in Virginia Water last year.

The jury heard evidence of Aziz's attack on the vulnerable young woman in June last year when he had picked her up in his taxi after she had earlier attended Royal Ascot.

Aziz initially lied to police telling them he was not operating as a taxi when he picked up the victim, but later admitted he had lied because his license had expired.

During the sentencing His Honour Judge Fraser remarked that Aziz had taken advantage of his position of trust when he took the victim into his car in the early hours of June 19.

The jury had unanimously found Aziz guilty and he was sentenced to six years and six months in jail.

Detective Investigator Paddy Mayers said: "I welcome the custodial sentence which Perveiz Aziz received at court.

"He is clearly a predatory and dangerous individual and today's outcome means that he will be unable to harm members of the public any further. I want to reassure Surrey residents we will do everything possible to keep individuals like Aziz off our streets. Those who commit horrific attacks like this young woman endured will be put before the courts and I would like to commend the victim for her bravery in supporting the prosecution and helping provide the vital evidence which put this man behind bars.

"Surrey Police take all the forms of sexual offences very seriously and we would encourage anyone who feels they have been a victim to contact us so specialist officers can sensitively and thoroughly investigate."

http://goo.gl/SV07oU
----------------------------------------
 NEWQUAY

 THE boss of a bogus taxi firm which evaded hundreds of thousands of pounds of taxes has been jailed – and two others handed suspended sentences.

Martin Perks, 68, of Well Way, Porth, Newquay, was sentenced to three years in prison at Truro Crown Court today (Thursday).

Christopher Perks, 41, of Horizon Fields, Sennen, and Peter Hull, 60, of Golden Bank Park, Falmouth, were both sentenced to 12 months in prison, suspended for two years.

All three had admitted charges of running the bogus Chy-Meor Flight Connections taxi firm, specialising in long-distance journeys to and from major UK transit hubs, which ran out of Porth, Newquay and Grampound Road Industrial Estate between January 2009 and May 2013 and of claiming to be a fully licensed and insured private hire operation.

In reality, Cornwall Council's Trading Standards officers found that the firm used unlicensed drivers and unlicensed vehicles, falsified driver documentation and made false declarations to local vehicle hire businesses.

The Trading Standards investigation took over 18 months and also discovered that the firm had made false declarations to HM Revenue and Customs to avoid paying VAT.

Despite having a turnover of around £1.2million, the form evaded almost £300,000 worth of VAT over four years.

The court heard that in May 2014 Martin Perks absconded to France.

He was arrested by French police near Toulouse in July 2015 and extradited to the UK after a European Arrest Warrant was served for Cornwall Council Trading Standards and HM Revenue and Customs offences.

Elizabeth Kirk, Cornwall Council senior Trading Standards officer said: "For us, this case centred around public safety.

"Our licensing laws exist to protect passengers from unfit drivers and unsafe vehicles.

"The activities of this business also caused insurances, where they existed, to be invalidated.

"We are really pleased with the outcome of this case, which was a real team effort and a great example of joined up working across the council."

Cornwall Council cabinet member for communities Geoff Brown said: "I commend the outstanding work of officers from Cornwall Trading Standards who brought this lengthy case to a conclusion.

"Cornwall Council remains determined to ensure public safety and operating an unlicensed and unregistered business could have serious implications for both the well-being and security of customers."

http://www.plymouthherald.co.uk/Bosses-bogus-taxi-firm-jailed/story-29112269-detail/story.html?
-----------------------------------------

CAB drivers in Rotherham have been told they must fit CCTV cameras in an effort to rebuild trust in the town’s taxi industry.

Rotherham Council has introduced the new rules under their Taxi and Hackney Carriage policy, and drivers have until July 6 to fit the cameras.

Last December, during the trial of six men who were eventually convicted of the sexual exploitation of teenage girls in the town, the court heard police had been told that an underage teenage girl was being pressured to have sex with local Asian taxi drivers, but that no action was ever taken.

A year ago, two Rotherham taxi drivers arrested on suspicion of historic sexual offences against underage girls had their licences revoked.

Council commissioner Mary Ney said today the council believed the cameras would “provide protection, confidence and reassurance to the public when they are travelling in a taxi”.

She added: “The system also provides protection to taxi drivers who can experience abusive behaviour.

“The new camera rules are just one part of the policy which has been introduced to support drivers to do their job, by rebuilding trust and confidence.

“All drivers have known about the requirement for taxi cameras since last summer.”

The system will record video footage from inside the vehicle, and in some cases outside the vehicle, whenever the vehicle is being used as a taxi.

Whenever an unaccompanied child or vulnerable adult is being carried in the vehicle, audio recording must be activated by the driver.

But both the driver and the passenger can also activate the audio recording at any time.

Only people authorised by the council can access any recorded footage - and drivers will be unable to access footage.

The council will only download the footage in certain circumstances, such as if there is a complaint or incident involving a taxi, or if the council wants to check that the system is being used properly.

The council can easily check if a vehicle was being used as a taxi at a particular time by referring to records held by the private hire company that the taxi is working for.

Commissioner Ney added: “The camera system will provide protection for both passengers and the driver, and there needs to be the correct balance between protecting people and making sure that there is no breach of people’s rights to privacy.

“The driver is required to make sure that the system is operating correctly when the taxi is working.

“We will carry out random checks including downloading footage from the systems to verify that the systems are being used as required by the Council’s policy.

“If they are not then drivers may have their licence suspended or revoked.”

http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/crime/rotherham-taxi-drivers-will-be-forced-to-install-cctv-cameras-1-7853351
---------------------------------------
 MANCHESTER

 An Uber driver has been suspended after allegedly pestering a young woman into going for a drink and telling her he liked sex.

Vicki Trigg left the taxi terrified after the cabbie, who said he was married, told her he had been ‘waiting for her’ after dropping her off at the Manchester Arena earlier in the evening.

She claimed she was ‘extremely uncomfortable’ when he made inappropriate comments and badgered her to go out with him.

Vicki, 24, said the driver repeatedly asked if she would be his friend - and said he would ‘pester’ her until she gave in and went for a drink.

She was dropped off by the Uber driver ahead of the Muse concert last Friday, April 8.

Vicki says he took her phone out of her hand and called his own number, insisting he would pick her up after the show.

Before Vicki had even left the arena, she says the driver bombarded her with messages wanting to collect her and take her back to her car three miles away at her work.

He then allegedly told her intimate details about his personal life - and that he wanted a girlfriend even though he was married.

Vicki claims that when they arrived where her car was parked, he stopped the taxi and turned the engine off before offering her cigarettes. She says he told her she didn’t have to pay the fare - and that she could ‘pay him back’ if they went out together.

Vicki quickly left the taxi, blocked the driver’s number and complained to Uber. The firm have suspended him while they look into the ‘serious incident’.

http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/uber-driver-suspended-after-harassing-11182532

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/uber-driver-suspended-offering-terrified-7751908#ICID=sharebar_twitter
------------------------------------------