End of Year
As most of you are probably aware, our financial year ended on August 31. The past year has been a particularly difficult trading period and is not far behind the downturn that we experienced ten years ago.
   Although our auditors have now finalised their work in Brunswick House, we are still waiting for the figures to be confirmed, however, it would appear that we have experienced an almost 18% downturn in our turnover which is not far behind the 22% downturn that we experienced ten years ago. The difference this time is that we have still made money, unlike ten years ago when this company started trading on a day-to-day basis following that downturn. Consequently, we are very pleased with our figures especially as we will be showing nearly £1.5m in depreciation on our new equipment and as you know, that figure comes directly off the bottom line.

Christmas Incentives
Taking into consideration the above information, the BoM have decided that this year we will not be offering incentives during the 'run up' to Christmas. Although we hope that things will be a lot busier than normal, we consider that with the downturn it is easily within your power to maintain the excellent service that you give to your clients throughout the remainder of the year. It is even more imperative this year that every trip is covered and the service remains excellent so that we can start the New Year by hitting the ground running.
   The coming year will again be a difficult trading period, consequently we will need to retain every account. It would be sheer folly not to, after all it is your business...

Working Time Directive
I have written in previous Call Sign reports regarding the Working Time Directive and the support that the taxi trade has encountered has been very encouraging. Our latest campaign, after receiving support from the PCO and Mayor Ken Livingstone, was to obtain the support of Government. This we did by writing to the Under Secretary of State to seek a meeting. I am very pleased to report that the reply from the Under Secretary of State was that he was fully conversant with our submissions and that he totally supported us and has written to the European Parliament emphasising that fact.

The Times
I recently read an article in The Times (17.10.02) where they made a scurrilous attack upon the London Taxi Trade, accusing us of all sorts of things including being the domain of 'white' drivers. I was so incensed by the article that I wrote a letter to them, as indeed many of you have judging by the telephone calls that I received. To date I have not read one letter in The Times from anyone within our industry - I just can't think why!
   I must say that I always felt that the newspaper in question was a bastion of our society, always reporting things honestly and fairly, how naïve I have been. My view of The Times will never be the same again...
   A few weeks earlier, the same newspaper ran a similar article condemning the minicab trade and it's difficult to believe how they can do such a complete U turn completely contradicting themselves. So I suppose the moral is that you can never believe everything that you read in the press, unless of course you read it in The Chairman's report in Call Sign magazine!

Westminster TaxiCard
You will see elsewhere in this issue an article relating to a Brunswick House visit by some residents from the Borough of Westminster who take advantage of the TaxiCard scheme their Borough offers. The meeting went very well and I believe that everyone was suitably impressed, which brings me to the next point...
   Towards the end of December or early January, Westminster will be issuing tender documents to all interested parties regarding the TaxiCard scheme. The tenders will have to be returned within the following six weeks or so and the Borough will then evaluate them and finally award the contract to the successful company. The new contract will run from April
2004 and will be for TaxiCard only, however, hot on the heels of that tender will be the contract for the Westminster Special Needs Account, the one that we lost to a competitor some time ago.

Tax Disc Holders on 'stop'
I have received several telephone calls and e-mails from members who have received 'stops' regarding the tax disc holders that bear our telephone number. I telephoned the PCO to clarify the position and it would appear that a tax disc holder that bears any form of advertising is now unacceptable. If you submit your vehicle for passing and it is fitted with a tax holder that is 'illegal', you will be advised when you leave the PCO with your new plates that you should replace the offending tax disc holder as soon as possible. However, if your vehicle receives a stop for any other reason, then the offending tax holder will be included in the stop note. So if any of you are in overhaul in the near future, please remove the offending item before submitting your vehicle for passing. To my knowledge, we have been producing these holders for at least twenty years, as indeed other companies within our industry have done and they have now become illegal. I couldn't possibly comment any further...!

GPS
I hope you will now forgive me for a little indulgence as I intend writing about a topic that perhaps should not be included in the Chairman's report, but I made a promise to a member several years ago and I would like to fulfil that promise.
   At an AGM, probably three years ago, I was asked that if a cab took a job from a backup zone that we should not expect the cab to run further than the job was going. I agreed and the member wanted to put a proposition to that effect. I asked him to withhold the proposition until we had GPS up and running and we knew the position of every vehicle. That day has now arrived, so if you take a job from a backup zone and have to run further than the job is going, you can go to the voice channel and have the job re-covered. They will obviously check your position and if everything is bona fide, it will be re-covered. I am sure that someone will think of another scenario, but I can only think of it applying to 'AD' trips, because most normal trip offers contain the destination, so if you are running further than it is going then you shouldn't have accepted it in the first place - is that OK Pat...?

Brian Rice
Chairman