Cabbies threatened with suspension in sticker row (From Daily Echo)

Would love to see a court case out of this one, as i cant see what the problem is.
Certainly not a race issue.
Does that mean the number plates with the EU logo should be covered up for fear of offending non EU citizens?
How about the GB ( or other country) stickers?
Many cars, possibly taxis as well, have some sort of indication on where they are from, will they be hunted down as well?
Jees, what is the country coming to?

There is nothing racist about letting people know you speak English. What an effing joke.

As a council tax payer I would hate to see this one go to court. On the other hand, as a supporter of free speech I would be only too willing to contribute to any fighting fund set up to support any cabbie willing to take this to court.

Councillor Parnell and Councillor Thomas need to take a look at the overwhelming support that the cabbies are getting and try to understand why the majority of people feel this way.

As for Perry McMillan - self-serving, self-publicist who represents nobody, he should also get behind these cabbies and understand their grievances if he is truly their union rep instead of denigrating their actions as racist.

The licencing authority should also review their policies and procedures to ensure that the people who are driving cabs around have the appropriate checks done, they should also be out doing spot checks to ensure that the people driving the cabs are those to whom the licence has been issued. Everybody knows what is happening out there but the licencing authority are doing nothing about it.

He should be hunted down for having the L.F.C sticker in back window too!

I presume Perry Mcmillans support for terrorist murderer Che Guavara will also have to be removed from within his cab.

hulla baloo wrote:
Would love to see a court case out of this one, as i cant see what the problem is.
Certainly not a race issue.
Does that mean the number plates with the EU logo should be covered up for fear of offending non EU citizens?
How about the GB ( or other country) stickers?
Many cars, possibly taxis as well, have some sort of indication on where they are from, will they be hunted down as well?
Jees, what is the country coming to?

in this case it could very well be hulla baloo, can you remember back few years ago when the bnp stood in the local elections here, a very few cabbies was there mouth piece.
what this guy can do is put up a union flag sticker with no words. and if he speaks other languages put up stickers for the county/s of the language too, easy way round it.
the trouble is that that the bnp and edl both right wing extremist have high-jack this logo.

The Council should be hunted down for approving cabbies who can't converse properly with customers.

Hasn't the Council anything better to do? Good luck to the cabbies in question.

what a joke do we live in england or what. we are gonna be muslim run sooner rather than later

Another case of PC madness. Many taxi drivers of differing nationalities display flags or symbols of thier origins, but have officials have them removed - I dont think so; so what is the problem.

Red&White Power wrote:
I presume Perry Mcmillans support for terrorist murderer Che Guavara will also have to be removed from within his cab.

you have to be careful what you put up and where in car windows now days, there is a law that forbids where and what you can and can not put up, and its location. (obstruction on drivers view)

Will they be hunting down the illegal imigrant cabbies too?

we live in a sad world.

Interesting change to the sticker - in other articles the sticker said "English speaking driver" which I think is fine and can be used by anyone competent in the language therefore no racist implication, whereas this guy's sticker says "English driver" which is another matter entirely (doesn't even say he speaks English - could be a Geordie FFS!)

I happen to think that this council should be hunted down as an affront to humanity in any case.

Is this all their tiny minds can fixate on with all the problems we now have.

Paltry and pathetic.

Miles Way wrote:
Interesting change to the sticker - in other articles the sticker said "English speaking driver" which I think is fine and can be used by anyone competent in the language therefore no racist implication, whereas this guy's sticker says "English driver" which is another matter entirely (doesn't even say he speaks English - could be a Geordie FFS!)

Interesting point. That could be the negotiating concession that allows the council to get out of this ridiculous self-inflicted mess they have jerked themselves into. It is interesting to observe that the only reason "council officials" prosecute these cases is because they are terrified that if they don't they in turn will be accused of being racists.
In this way we are not actually being governed by our government, but by the holders of politically correct orthodoxy.
Civil Liberties groups learned this some time ago and now hold huge politicial influence, without any accountability.

Yes, it is useful to speak english and I am sure that most workers from other countries are able to speak enough to get by. Probably the driver may be a very good driver but there is a difference which in most countries it is essential to have the right inflection in ones voice to interact (nuance). If one is going on a long journey then sometimes they will pass the time going over all manner of interests. Not struggle to understand the drivers english - as indeed I had to struggle with the very nice Indian hospital doctor explaining as to what they were going to do with me!! It is sad but migrants have a lot more english to learn and I think it will only be their children who will have integrated into this society and eventually all nationalities will merge. In the meantime, we need Councils encouraging EVERYONE to unite not pit us against each other.

goard

This is ridiculous!!!! So the council is going to spend time and money chasing after taxi drivers because of a sticker!! Oh this is just too much...I do not want my council tax going up because of pointless rubbish like this. Get the endless amounts of pot holes filled in in the roads and stop putting in so my flaming traffic lights!!!

Fly the flag and be proud...proud to be English!! In England we speak English!! If you don't learn it!

Good luck to the cabbies for providing customers with information about the service they are offering.

Has the council got no real work to get on with?

Surely the council are going about this entirely the wrong way. My sympathies are with the customers who have been in cabs where the driver did not speak adquate english and with the cabbies who have tried to respond to this. do the council have an english language test for the drivers? surely they should introduce one immediately and put an appropriate sticker in the car, not harass the cabbies like this.

Farcical! This is England, if a driver wishes to state his nationality for the benefit of his clients how in the hell can that be racist!

We bend over backwards in this country so as not to offend people of foreign extraction. Whilst I would never condone treating someone badly because they do not originate from the UK, neither should be give them specialist treatment because of it.

It's getting to the stage where if we declare we are English, British, Scottish, Welsh or Irish then somehow we are being racist to those peoples who CHOSE to come here to live. We didn't drag them here kicking and screaming, the made that choice for themselves. Live with it, or ship off back home.

The Wickham Man wrote:

Miles Way wrote:
Interesting change to the sticker - in other articles the sticker said "English speaking driver" which I think is fine and can be used by anyone competent in the language therefore no racist implication, whereas this guy's sticker says "English driver" which is another matter entirely (doesn't even say he speaks English - could be a Geordie FFS!)

Interesting point. That could be the negotiating concession that allows the council to get out of this ridiculous self-inflicted mess they have jerked themselves into. It is interesting to observe that the only reason "council officials" prosecute these cases is because they are terrified that if they don't they in turn will be accused of being racists.
In this way we are not actually being governed by our government, but by the holders of politically correct orthodoxy.
Civil Liberties groups learned this some time ago and now hold huge politicial influence, without any accountability.

I agree, anti racism groups exist along with a whole batch of other PC self interest groups who spend their time looking for reasons to be offended (rather than stuff that actually does offend) to sustain their own industries.

I think it's time for the council head of 'Spin' I mean communication to start earning his £80,000 pounds per year.
They are heading for a massive PR own goal!

It's just another step closer to civil unrest in the UK.

English Speaking Driver was fine by me if as was mentioned in the original story's comments, people were having problems with their journeys home with other nationalities. It's about choice.
I live in London and Ghanain, Nigerian, Afghani, Pakistani etc etc pennants hang from a great deal of the rear view mirrors. They often haven't a clue where they are going so I'd welcome the prospect of knowing a driver would be able to understand where I wanted to go. I can't remember when I had an British driver in 12 years of living here.
Busby has issues above and beyond offering the good people of Southampton a decent level of understanding it seems. The font used on the badge suggests to me something more sinister.

In This article it sounds like part of the plan to diminish national loyalty and identity is being carried out by the government. Part of the New World Order with the hammer of Political Correctness imposed upon people in the UK. Remember no more nationality, national borders, culture, regionalism, no more homeland for the English. It is all part of the plan. Wake up people and be careful who you vote for. The liblabcon is selling out the country, as planned.

It's not just about speaking English, seems every other cab driver can't even read the road signs by the look of some of the driving on display out there.
Double yellow lines, speed restrictions and red lights are there for a reason!

has he paid his council tax yet?

i was in a cab the other day and the guy could not understand me i found this to be very frustrating as i was in a rush. I for one is so fed up with all these do gooders telling us what we can and cant do wish they would get on with something that would make a change to our lifes instead of making it more difficult on us. good on you cabbies take a stand

My opinion is that it is not a race issue. It's a question of people being fit for their job, and if language barriers are a problem, it's not racist to highlight these language barriers. Of course, there are always the busybodys within the council who will make a meal out of it.

I think it would be a good idea to have a polish or urdu or whatever the cabbie speaks phrase book in the back of the cab so you can tell them where you want to go to. Try looking at the poor cabbies point of view.

People pay their council tax for this, English people getting persecuted for being proud to call themselves after their homeland.
Southampton City Council have a lot to answer to, the people of Southampton should start a petition to stop this act of racism against the English people, the Pakistani, Muslim, Jamaican, Indian, African and many more races that come to this country to get the benefits of state education, NHS, our benefit services, welcome all this when they come here, so they should assimilate into our way of life too, to coincide with their traditions, and ours, and bearing a flag is one of them, a ST George Cross is just not for football, it is the flag of our nation, the nation of England, and if you are proud of this and the fact that you are and speak English, you have the right to state this in any way you see fit.
Will the council be telling the migrants, and immigrants to take their flags and pennants out of display in their taxis. Doubtful. Southampton City Council, as an entity you are being racist towards the English. Love to see the Judges face when it is pointed out that the St George Cross is on the emblem sitting above the Judges head. It has made a mockery of the council, whose leaders were voted in by English people as well as the migrant population of Southampton, bear in mind the English out number any other ethnic background, who vote for your leaders and for the government that run this country.

HUNT THEM DOWN !!!!
What a joke,bring back Hitler he will do the job for you.
I take it all Pakistan flags will have to be removed from cabs , how about banning the Bollywood music played by cab drivers?
Once again the Council make a problem where one does not exist

Is the council doing to hunt down the non English speaking cab drivers as well,or is that too PC

Why dont these council officials get off of their butts and get out and 'hunt down' all the illegal and non English speaking cab drivers in the city, this would make much more sense and my hard earned council tax would be put to a good use!

actually , the sticker does not say "english speaking driver" , is says "english driver" ,,,, there is no way these stickers should be allowed.
fine have a sticker saying "I speak the following languages ...." , fine have flags and dangles festooning the car but this campaign is fooling no one.

saintpeter48 wrote:
Why dont these council officials get off of their butts and get out and 'hunt down' all the illegal and non English speaking cab drivers in the city, this would make much more sense and my hard earned council tax would be put to a good use!

i am sick and tired of cabdrivers who seem to have got straight off the boat and can't speak English

Listen to Royston making a mug of himself live on Radio 2 now!

My god, these people must have time on their hands to go out and play spot-the-sticker. How much do they earn a year? So what we're now saying is its racist to declare yourself an English speaking person. This council, this country has gone soft in the head.

What about the Scottish Saltaire, the Cornish white on black cross and the Welsh Dragon--hunt them down before someone in Hampshire gets upset!

stmarysmush wrote:
I think it would be a good idea to have a polish or urdu or whatever the cabbie speaks phrase book in the back of the cab so you can tell them where you want to go to. Try looking at the poor cabbies point of view.

Better idea to try and look where you're going.

Its funny as only England seems to have a problem of being English.

I spent a number of years in Scotland. They fly the Saltire on all public buildings. In fact they only change it to the Union Flag, on state occassions. There are a few exceptions, like Edinburgh Castle, where the Union Flag flys all the time.

There is no issues about being Scottish and stating your Scottish. Why has the PC brigade stopped us being English. FFS, even town halls fly the Union Flag rather than the fly the St Georges cross.

About time we have our own countries to be proud off. Be English/Scottish/Wel
sh/N Irish first, UK 2nd, European 3rd.

I am English btw, but astounded how it is rammed down our throats not to be English.

St Dannuth wrote:

saintpeter48 wrote:
Why dont these council officials get off of their butts and get out and 'hunt down' all the illegal and non English speaking cab drivers in the city, this would make much more sense and my hard earned council tax would be put to a good use!

i am sick and tired of cabdrivers who seem to have got straight off the boat and can't speak English

they have to take a test that is in english,
and i just finish speaking to a cab driver, the majority of cab drivers will not put this sticker up, because of the connection between this logo and the bnp and edl and its the same old ones from last time that supports the bnp.

I'm voting BNP from now on. Southampton City Council have pushed this once proud Englishman just a bit TOO far with this latest anti-English outrage. How the **** can it be racist to advertise the fact you speak your mother tongue?

Come on you courageous cabbies - fly the flag!!

stickymcglue wrote:
actually , the sticker does not say "english speaking driver" , is says "english driver" ,,,, there is no way these stickers should be allowed.
fine have a sticker saying "I speak the following languages ...." , fine have flags and dangles festooning the car but this campaign is fooling no one.

So in your head , the cabbie is not English then, I am English and if I want to say I am English I will, no pc Muppet will ever get me to take down my flag, I was born here in England, so I am English, My parents are English, so am I now not allowed to state I am English. So who is the racist me or you for denying me the right to herald my land, by birthright.
PC needs taken from this land, the English should not be treated as second class citizens in their own country before the UK even existed England was here, and England shall always be here, Go and tell an American to take is flag down, and not to say he is an American, he would shoot you.

southy wrote:

St Dannuth wrote:

saintpeter48 wrote: Why dont these council officials get off of their butts and get out and 'hunt down' all the illegal and non English speaking cab drivers in the city, this would make much more sense and my hard earned council tax would be put to a good use!

i am sick and tired of cabdrivers who seem to have got straight off the boat and can't speak English

they have to take a test that is in english, and i just finish speaking to a cab driver, the majority of cab drivers will not put this sticker up, because of the connection between this logo and the bnp and edl and its the same old ones from last time that supports the bnp.

Southy, if you buried your head any deeper in the sand we'd only be able to see the soles of your feet.
Yes the licensee takes a test, but the licensee then gets his brothers, cousins and mates to run the taxi 24x7 to make the maximum income possible. Don't say it doesn't happen, it does. The licencing authority know it happens but are too lazy to get out of their beds at night and run checks to weed out the illegal drivers.

Lets hope the council have better luck in catching a cab than Joe public

How about the council taking down all their posters for information in other languages?

Or giving taxi licenses to people that have passed a driving test in the UK, not in an automatic old banger that fell to bits in the sand.

i for one ask for an english driver when i call for a cab.

G0Rf wrote:
He should be hunted down for having the L.F.C sticker in back window too!

And if this guy originates from Liverpool he should be charged under the Trades Description Act.
Surely Scouse isn't English.

One of the correspondents wrote: " we bend backwards " in this country . To me it seems we are bending the...other way round !!

Invisible wrote:
I'm voting BNP from now on. Southampton City Council have pushed this once proud Englishman just a bit TOO far with this latest anti-English outrage. How the **** can it be racist to advertise the fact you speak your mother tongue? Come on you courageous cabbies - fly the flag!!

Spot on. I would'nt like to see them run the whole country but a few of the ridiculous, pc gone mad, councils would'nt be a bad thing.


Don't back you english speaking cabbies everyone is with you on this.

"Darren Busby...said the stickers were about providing a good service to customers."

How so? Don't all taxi drivers take you round the long route to get as much cash out of you?

Or is it so they can talk to you and distract you from the fact they have taken you round the long route to get as much cash out of you?

Carpe Diem wrote:

southy wrote:

St Dannuth wrote:

saintpeter48 wrote: Why dont these council officials get off of their butts and get out and 'hunt down' all the illegal and non English speaking cab drivers in the city, this would make much more sense and my hard earned council tax would be put to a good use!

i am sick and tired of cabdrivers who seem to have got straight off the boat and can't speak English

they have to take a test that is in english, and i just finish speaking to a cab driver, the majority of cab drivers will not put this sticker up, because of the connection between this logo and the bnp and edl and its the same old ones from last time that supports the bnp.

Southy, if you buried your head any deeper in the sand we'd only be able to see the soles of your feet.
Yes the licensee takes a test, but the licensee then gets his brothers, cousins and mates to run the taxi 24x7 to make the maximum income possible. Don't say it doesn't happen, it does. The licencing authority know it happens but are too lazy to get out of their beds at night and run checks to weed out the illegal drivers.

well if you have any proof of this report it, and that go's for any one. the police can step in to on illegal cabby's

that was meant to say "dont back down" at the end

The day i have to leave my flag of honour under the mattress is the same day we ENGLISH will have to declare civil war to protect our birth right. We invite all nationals to OUR country as we would our living rooms so they as guests they have to except we are ENGLISH our flag is of ST.GEORGE which has been passed down through history since the Knights Templar and we are b-oody proud of it the same as every other National are proud of theres.So I say to the Cabbies refuse to take down your flags on the grounds of Racial equality. As did the City who flew our flag of St George along side the Union Flag on the Freedom of the city day's you cannot play one rule when it suits and another when it dont its not legal so if this is quoted in court you should not lose and as a tax payer once again my dues will have been wasted .

I suggest that all drivers, and not just taxi drivers, place a sign on their car and say that the driver speaks English. Southampton Council really should look to cleaning up the City and supporting the cruise and tourist business, rather than becoming involved with PC nonsense. If you agree, go out to your car now and place a sign on it. I suggest that the sign should say "Driver speaks English, support the drive to clean up Southampton".

العربية

Does Southy display any stickers, and if so, are they in english?

I think the council are dealing with this problem from the wrong direction. Instead of banning the stickers, licence them. Then every taxi will have to display a label showing all the languages the driver can speak. This will then help all of the foreign visitors to the city and will only be an embarressment to those who can only only speak the one language.

You will probably see the same photo as the one at the top six months later complaining that the more lucrative cruiseship work has dried up now everyone is using a taxi that speaks their lingo.

I was in a cab once and the driver wouldn't shut up with his "I'm not racist but..." cobblers for the entire journey.
How I wished I got one that could only speak Urdu.

Taxi trade representatives, councillors ALL THE STAFF IN THE HACKNEY OFFICE ''THEY ARE THE RACIST'' THIS IS ENGLAND ! WORK IT OUT ! ! THE BHP KNOW WHAT TO DO ''VOTE THEM IN ''

BHP? British Hate Party, very apt

Big Mac wrote:
Does Southy display any stickers, and if so, are they in english?

no mac i dont display any except for the ones that law allows you to. even lo i could get away with it has i drive a estate car i am allow to place stickers on far rear glass on the side of the car.

Duckorange wrote:
BHP? British Hate Party, very apt

bmp british muppet party

So having a St George flag makes you BNP,
BNP british nationalist party, fly the Jack
Not the ST GEORGE CROSS,
Its about being English In your own land, its only do gooders that label it racist, I am English and proud to say so, Are you not proud to be English.
BTW I would not vote BNP if you paid me, but that is a do gooders way, accuse people of being BNP or EDL, just because you think it is racist to fly the flag of England, sorry but you are the racist, racism against the people of ENGLAND must stop.

Big Mac wrote:
It's not just about speaking English, seems every other cab driver can't even read the road signs by the look of some of the driving on display out there. Double yellow lines, speed restrictions and red lights are there for a reason!

Your absolutely correct, people need to look back to the beginning when these drivers are obtaining their licenses. The topograhy (or what ever you call it) test should be testing knowledge of southampton roads, I have lived here 31 years and I couldn't even tell where to go half the time. I actually believe (no facts here) that the council give half of these licenses in fear of being deamed racist in the first place, when infact the candidate is not even passing them, how else would situations where drivers with no knowledge happen. We have so many situations in the past where taxi drivers are concerned and I think its time the council took a step back, started listening and fight for whats right. The trouble is the taxi associations, the council, licensing etc etc are governed by cowards!

Its not the stickers that have "sparked a racist row", its the council and their ridiculous attitude! These stickers are factual, they are not racist. The council should get on with some proper work and not waste time and money on this.

Pootle wrote:
I think the council are dealing with this problem from the wrong direction. Instead of banning the stickers, licence them. Then every taxi will have to display a label showing all the languages the driver can speak. This will then help all of the foreign visitors to the city and will only be an embarressment to those who can only only speak the one language. You will probably see the same photo as the one at the top six months later complaining that the more lucrative cruiseship work has dried up now everyone is using a taxi that speaks their lingo.

No one has stated that people should use Taxis with the driver speaking only their language, nor have they suggested that that this will be the case moving forward. The point here is that people should be aware, given all the facts and be able to make a choice based on that information. As for the more 'lucrative cruiseship work' that you speak off, I would love to know where you got this impression, there are so many licensed taxi drivers within the southampton area it can't really be lucrative for anyone. What the taxi drivers are already complaining about it the loss of customs and contracts because of the non English speaking drivers, rudeness and threatening behaviour that is being witnessed.

Reminds of the sea-side postcard I once saw, you know, back in the good old days, when taking pxxs out of your neighbour, (all in good fun of coarse) was not frowned upon, "what!, you don't remember, where has the last ten years gone.
Anyway, This bloke was about to board the bus, when the conductor shouts - "Solly, i'm Ram Jam full", so the geeser says, - "I don't want to know your name mate, I only want to get on the bus.

Treas wrote:
My previous posting was removed, so here goes again... All drivers, whether taxi drivers or not, should place a notice in their cars saying "Driver Speaks English. Lets drive to clean up Southampton". That way our PC council will concentrate on important things like supporting the cruise and tourist industries, rather than wasting time on PC nonsense. Southampton streets are a disgrace, and all the Council can do is rake up matters such as this, aided by this rubbish newspaper.

are you advocating that people should break the law by putting stickers up that might or would block there field of vision.

You would have thought that the council really would have better things to with their time than chase taxi drivers for displaying the fact that they are English, A sorry state of affairs.

Fansince1969 wrote:
Its not the stickers that have "sparked a racist row", its the council and their ridiculous attitude! These stickers are factual, they are not racist. The council should get on with some proper work and not waste time and money on this.

Spot on!! Whenever the government tries to take away our identity and anything English we all become more voiciferous! It's a joke. They'll be taking the queen away next saying it's unfair on countries that don't have a queen!!!

If I go abroad to a country that doesn't speak English I expect to learn a few phrases and would not be offended to see stickers on taxi's over there saying Italian speaking in Italy so what is the problem over here!!

Rather than the Council hounding these taxi drivers, perhaps they would like to use our hard earned council tax (as they appear to have it to waste) to start a campaign where we are encouraged to shout from the rooftops I am ENGLISH mate and proud of it! The people in power are so out of touch with what their electorate actually feel about such issues it would be laughable if it were not so sad. If I wanted to move to France I would expect to learn bliddy french, I would expect to assimilate myself into their culture, I would not expect them to learn my language to communicate with me, spend thousands on bliddy leaflets in every language under the sun and conform to my culture and religion. Get with the bliddy programme ENGLAND stand up and be counted and let's put an end to this ludicrous state of affairs.

what about all those polish shops. will the council shut those down?. i very much doubt it.

Odd I always thought English was the language of the U.K. I assume the council have to be notified of this.

Straight to the point the plate on Darren's car is owned by an asian. What he is saying is the asian owner is alright its all the others. There is only a dozen or so drivers spoprting this as they keep getting mistaken for Eastern Europeans and those with dark hair as Romanies. I know the dozen drivers and there deographic status; if you took all non white drivers out of the trade they will have a prejudice with the foreigner on their street, take him away then it will be with one in the city, take them away it will then be with the one in the counrty etc etc. There are many white English drivers in the trade why have they not got these stickers in the window- because they do not have any underlying racial issues in or out of the trade.

There is nothing wrong with the English flag it is a symbol of England and all those who reside here and it is NOT offensive but it has been hijacked by the far right as the picture of Churchill by the B.N.P. It is more to with what is written on it, are these wrangler jean wearing brigade trying to tell us that speak impeccable English?! Thier English is riddled with colloquiallism, elimentry vocabulary and F word as a filler. They are not good ambassadors for the english language.

However, there is a problem which has increased in the recent past where drivers are coming into the trade who do not know the geography or a reasonable standard of english. This is the main issue and instigator of what is happening in the taxi trade at the moment so as the saying goes "all roads lead to Brighton" in this case all roads lead to SOUTHBROOK RISE who have furnished the trade with sub standard drivers.

One driver when asked by licensing could NOT produce his driver badge but boasts about been being a card carrying B.N.P member- where is the sense in that ? Thses dozen or so drivers do not interact with non white drivers during thier working day and is most probably the case in thier private lives. So lets get away from these dozen or so drivers who are actually being a hindrance to interactive and itegrated white drivers and all sundry. This issue of the lack of english does exist but it is a problem for the council not fuel for causing disharmoney in the trade amongst the drivers who all get on well. DO NOT get sucked in to what seems to have been hijacked by patrons of the B.N.P.

Southampton has been the door to the world for centuries many nationalties have passed through lets not ruin that. Lets get the council to tackle a problem they have let get out of control.

If the dozen are sporting these labels because the new foreign cohort cannot speak good english then I would like to ask how do they intend to accommodate myself and those who CAN speak better english than the dozen but is Not white english??

The actual issue is not racist ie the lack of english in the trade that needs to be addressed but it has become so due to the type of cohort of the drivers involved.

Last thing, Darren at least you are overt about it the others bottled it to go public but you do need to edit the label to "English Driver Asian Owner"

southy wrote:

Treas wrote:
My previous posting was removed, so here goes again... All drivers, whether taxi drivers or not, should place a notice in their cars saying "Driver Speaks English. Lets drive to clean up Southampton". That way our PC council will concentrate on important things like supporting the cruise and tourist industries, rather than wasting time on PC nonsense. Southampton streets are a disgrace, and all the Council can do is rake up matters such as this, aided by this rubbish newspaper.

are you advocating that people should break the law by putting stickers up that might or would block there field of vision.

OK southy, where does Treas say putting stickers up that might or would block their vision, I'm sure most people know the law on this.

Treas, your previous posts have not been removed, go back and count them, they're all their including the same one you put on the knifing article previously.

Huffybear wrote:
My god, these people must have time on their hands to go out and play spot-the-sticker. How much do they earn a year? So what we're now saying is its racist to declare yourself an English speaking person. This council, this country has gone soft in the head.

The voters are the soft ones if they put them same ones back in power at the next election.
The previous Council ruined the city and lives of citizens with too slack Planning policies and the expansion of the Night Time Economy, now this lot get nasty with anyone who complains about it.
There is far more important work to be done than chasing taxis drivers and looking for stickers.
Better to prosecute illegal flyposters ?
No, dare not, they might not undersand English.

B. L. wrote:

southy wrote:

Treas wrote:
My previous posting was removed, so here goes again... All drivers, whether taxi drivers or not, should place a notice in their cars saying "Driver Speaks English. Lets drive to clean up Southampton". That way our PC council will concentrate on important things like supporting the cruise and tourist industries, rather than wasting time on PC nonsense. Southampton streets are a disgrace, and all the Council can do is rake up matters such as this, aided by this rubbish newspaper.

are you advocating that people should break the law by putting stickers up that might or would block there field of vision.

OK southy, where does Treas say putting stickers up that might or would block their vision, I'm sure most people know the law on this.

Treas, your previous posts have not been removed, go back and count them, they're all their including the same one you put on the knifing article previously.

Treas, just checked, your post on the knifing article is no longer there.

To British Asian
"you do need to edit the label to "English Driver Asian Owner"
Isn't that likely to increase the problem and lend more fuel to racism?
As I said previously "English spoken" is inoffensive but "English driver" as displayed here is going too far.
I, and I imagine most others really don't care if the taxi driver is English/Asian/white/
black/yellow or any colour in between, or even if the taxi is owned by an alien, as long as I can communicate easily with the driver & can be taken as directly as possible to where I want to go.
If needs be, why not "locally owned and operated - English spoken by all drivers & we know our way around!!"

Getting of the subject, (slightly). The council supplied me with a sticker, to put above the letter-box, "No goods or services bought at the door". I might as well not have it, as my letter box gets bombarded with flyers from the ethnic take-away fraternity. Perhaps I shall have to ask the Council to supply me with a replacement one, in Chinese. The delivery man often comes to my door, but I have to tell them that this is No38, not 36. Never touch the stuff myself.

I think the council will be wasting their time fighting this. The average citizen wants it, I dont see a problem with it...
.
I suppose Southy might have a point about blocking the window in some cases, not sure thats legislation - mind you have seen a couple of people with iced windscreens last week who probably should have been stopped for blocked view, LOL.
.
Hmm I'm gonna buy a St George's shirt and ride the bike around town with it on. Lets see if I get stopped, LOL.

Waysider wrote:
Getting of the subject, (slightly). The council supplied me with a sticker, to put above the letter-box, "No goods or services bought at the door". I might as well not have it, as my letter box gets bombarded with flyers from the ethnic take-away fraternity. Perhaps I shall have to ask the Council to supply me with a replacement one, in Chinese. The delivery man often comes to my door, but I have to tell them that this is No38, not 36. Never touch the stuff myself.

I didnt tell you this, but you could waste their time by putting the leaflet in a cheap envelope (bigger the better) and posting it back to them without the stamp. Oh and mark it "URGENT!" and forget a stamp means they'll a) have to pay for it and b) have to go and collect it.
.
As long as its in an envelope and addressed its legal.

Do you speak English? Obviously yes, your tag says you are from Canada, Would you not want to be addressed as a Canadian in your own country, English is one of the most spoken languages in the world, Americans speak English, but they are not from England, so what is wrong with saying you are from England, nothing, if there is then you are being racist toward the English.

HEADLINE:-..
Southampton City Council to hunt down cabbies with 'English-speaking driver' stickers.
.
Now is this a job for the City Stormtroopers or are we going to employ some Nazi style law enforcer without much charisma or talent...i wonder who we could nominate from the Council......sorry i can only think of two !!

The reason the council are hunting down the cabbies is that they can't read english nothing to do with the flag.
If they could read all these posts on here then they wouldn't bother hounding the taxi drivers. Stick to your guns drivers

Maybe we should all put England Flag stickers up in all our car windows saying English Speaker. They can't hunt us all down...maybe after it has spiralled completely out of control the council will admit to being completely pathetic and allow taxi drivers to continue as they are!

listening to royston on radio 2 he asked the taxi guy clive to retract the statement the council instigated the racism accusation seems to be different to what i have read looks like another two faced councillor

Last time I was home, I got a cab driver at the bus station who was friendly, efficient, spoke perfect English and was of Indian descent. I have had other cab drivers in the city whose ethnicity seems European but whose English was very questionable and was difficult to communicate with. Speaking English should be mandatory for a cab driver, regardless of their ethnicity. It should be a part of the cab licence test. This is just another example of ridiculous PC Paranoia.

Read my earlier post you have all gone off debating everything other than the issue itself or is my post comprehensive and balanced that only a canadian comments on a small section than to say whether what I said is balanced correct or otherwise or is my post too intellectually challenging for the masses.

English Warrior wrote:
Do you speak English? Obviously yes, your tag says you are from Canada, Would you not want to be addressed as a Canadian in your own country, English is one of the most spoken languages in the world, Americans speak English, but they are not from England, so what is wrong with saying you are from England, nothing, if there is then you are being racist toward the English.

I assume you're responding to my comments? If so my tag says I'm in Canada not that I'm Canadian - not that it makes any difference but FYI I'm a Hampshire lad through & through hence an interest in Hampshire issues.
Do I speak English? Yes, but then again having a Canadian tag wouldn't make that obvious as there are many over here as in the UK for whom English is not the first language.
Anyway, if you'd followed my comments through this and the other thread you'll have seen that I've supported the principle of having the flag with "English spoken" on it, however to simply put "English driver" as per the picture is IMO unnecessary and is playing the race card.
As I understand it the "English spoken" signs are fair play & give customers the option of choosing a taxi driver who can speak English (it really doesn't doesn't matter where they're from if they can offer a good service) whereas an "English driver" sign to get some business advantage is sending a quite different message that I can't support.
I would have the same issue with a "Asian driver" sign to secure more Asian customers or as BritishAsian suggested (I hope in jest) "Asian owned".
Clear enough?

B. L. wrote:

southy wrote:

Treas wrote:
My previous posting was removed, so here goes again... All drivers, whether taxi drivers or not, should place a notice in their cars saying "Driver Speaks English. Lets drive to clean up Southampton". That way our PC council will concentrate on important things like supporting the cruise and tourist industries, rather than wasting time on PC nonsense. Southampton streets are a disgrace, and all the Council can do is rake up matters such as this, aided by this rubbish newspaper.

are you advocating that people should break the law by putting stickers up that might or would block there field of vision.

OK southy, where does Treas say putting stickers up that might or would block their vision, I'm sure most people know the law on this.

Treas, your previous posts have not been removed, go back and count them, they're all their including the same one you put on the knifing article previously.

bl
""All drivers, whether taxi drivers or not, should place a notice in their cars saying "Driver Speaks English.""

putting any stickers up in car windows would block vision partly. there are law requirements what you can and can not put up in the field of vision of the driver, and any that the law allows can only be place in certain spots.

British asian wrote:
Straight to the point the plate on Darren's car is owned by an asian. What he is saying is the asian owner is alright its all the others. There is only a dozen or so drivers spoprting this as they keep getting mistaken for Eastern Europeans and those with dark hair as Romanies. I know the dozen drivers and there deographic status; if you took all non white drivers out of the trade they will have a prejudice with the foreigner on their street, take him away then it will be with one in the city, take them away it will then be with the one in the counrty etc etc. There are many white English drivers in the trade why have they not got these stickers in the window- because they do not have any underlying racial issues in or out of the trade.

There is nothing wrong with the English flag it is a symbol of England and all those who reside here and it is NOT offensive but it has been hijacked by the far right as the picture of Churchill by the B.N.P. It is more to with what is written on it, are these wrangler jean wearing brigade trying to tell us that speak impeccable English?! Thier English is riddled with colloquiallism, elimentry vocabulary and F word as a filler. They are not good ambassadors for the english language.

However, there is a problem which has increased in the recent past where drivers are coming into the trade who do not know the geography or a reasonable standard of english. This is the main issue and instigator of what is happening in the taxi trade at the moment so as the saying goes "all roads lead to Brighton" in this case all roads lead to SOUTHBROOK RISE who have furnished the trade with sub standard drivers.

One driver when asked by licensing could NOT produce his driver badge but boasts about been being a card carrying B.N.P member- where is the sense in that ? Thses dozen or so drivers do not interact with non white drivers during thier working day and is most probably the case in thier private lives. So lets get away from these dozen or so drivers who are actually being a hindrance to interactive and itegrated white drivers and all sundry. This issue of the lack of english does exist but it is a problem for the council not fuel for causing disharmoney in the trade amongst the drivers who all get on well. DO NOT get sucked in to what seems to have been hijacked by patrons of the B.N.P.

Southampton has been the door to the world for centuries many nationalties have passed through lets not ruin that. Lets get the council to tackle a problem they have let get out of control.

If the dozen are sporting these labels because the new foreign cohort cannot speak good english then I would like to ask how do they intend to accommodate myself and those who CAN speak better english than the dozen but is Not white english??

The actual issue is not racist ie the lack of english in the trade that needs to be addressed but it has become so due to the type of cohort of the drivers involved.

Last thing, Darren at least you are overt about it the others bottled it to go public but you do need to edit the label to "English Driver Asian Owner"

good post long but good.

southy wrote:

British asian wrote:
Straight to the point the plate on Darren's car is owned by an asian. What he is saying is the asian owner is alright its all the others. There is only a dozen or so drivers spoprting this as they keep getting mistaken for Eastern Europeans and those with dark hair as Romanies. I know the dozen drivers and there deographic status; if you took all non white drivers out of the trade they will have a prejudice with the foreigner on their street, take him away then it will be with one in the city, take them away it will then be with the one in the counrty etc etc. There are many white English drivers in the trade why have they not got these stickers in the window- because they do not have any underlying racial issues in or out of the trade.

There is nothing wrong with the English flag it is a symbol of England and all those who reside here and it is NOT offensive but it has been hijacked by the far right as the picture of Churchill by the B.N.P. It is more to with what is written on it, are these wrangler jean wearing brigade trying to tell us that speak impeccable English?! Thier English is riddled with colloquiallism, elimentry vocabulary and F word as a filler. They are not good ambassadors for the english language.

However, there is a problem which has increased in the recent past where drivers are coming into the trade who do not know the geography or a reasonable standard of english. This is the main issue and instigator of what is happening in the taxi trade at the moment so as the saying goes "all roads lead to Brighton" in this case all roads lead to SOUTHBROOK RISE who have furnished the trade with sub standard drivers.

One driver when asked by licensing could NOT produce his driver badge but boasts about been being a card carrying B.N.P member- where is the sense in that ? Thses dozen or so drivers do not interact with non white drivers during thier working day and is most probably the case in thier private lives. So lets get away from these dozen or so drivers who are actually being a hindrance to interactive and itegrated white drivers and all sundry. This issue of the lack of english does exist but it is a problem for the council not fuel for causing disharmoney in the trade amongst the drivers who all get on well. DO NOT get sucked in to what seems to have been hijacked by patrons of the B.N.P.

Southampton has been the door to the world for centuries many nationalties have passed through lets not ruin that. Lets get the council to tackle a problem they have let get out of control.

If the dozen are sporting these labels because the new foreign cohort cannot speak good english then I would like to ask how do they intend to accommodate myself and those who CAN speak better english than the dozen but is Not white english??

The actual issue is not racist ie the lack of english in the trade that needs to be addressed but it has become so due to the type of cohort of the drivers involved.

Last thing, Darren at least you are overt about it the others bottled it to go public but you do need to edit the label to "English Driver Asian Owner"

good post long but good.

good post (uncharacteristicall
y) sort but good.

English Warrior wrote:

stickymcglue wrote: actually , the sticker does not say "english speaking driver" , is says "english driver" ,,,, there is no way these stickers should be allowed. fine have a sticker saying "I speak the following languages ...." , fine have flags and dangles festooning the car but this campaign is fooling no one.

So in your head , the cabbie is not English then, I am English and if I want to say I am English I will, no pc Muppet will ever get me to take down my flag, I was born here in England, so I am English, My parents are English, so am I now not allowed to state I am English. So who is the racist me or you for denying me the right to herald my land, by birthright. PC needs taken from this land, the English should not be treated as second class citizens in their own country before the UK even existed England was here, and England shall always be here, Go and tell an American to take is flag down, and not to say he is an American, he would shoot you.

English nationalistic pride is irrelevant to this debate , gullable people may be taken in by the excuses of langauage problems etc etc but its clear what the thrust of this campaign is..... you can easily display "english pride" without insulting other people .... like I say , this campaign is fooling no-one.... and the council know that.

Surely the difference is between taxi drivers and private hire drivers.
A taxi driver has to be licenced, by the City Council, and should satisfy them that he has a correct licence, knowledge of the surrounding area and speaks the language.
These are the taxis that you can hail in the street.
The private hire is one that you have to book or phone to ask them to pick you up from wherever you are. I believe that they, although required to have a driving licence and insurance, do not need any licence from the City Council and do not have a meter in their cab either.
If I went to a taxi rank, I would take the first in the queue, regardless of the ethnic background of the driver.

Stand down So'ton council, you are a dictating bunch of losers who aren't worth their wages & even make labour look good & thats saying something.

What a shambles this town is.

Go now!

Miles Way wrote:

English Warrior wrote:
Do you speak English? Obviously yes, your tag says you are from Canada, Would you not want to be addressed as a Canadian in your own country, English is one of the most spoken languages in the world, Americans speak English, but they are not from England, so what is wrong with saying you are from England, nothing, if there is then you are being racist toward the English.

I assume you're responding to my comments? If so my tag says I'm in Canada not that I'm Canadian - not that it makes any difference but FYI I'm a Hampshire lad through & through hence an interest in Hampshire issues.
Do I speak English? Yes, but then again having a Canadian tag wouldn't make that obvious as there are many over here as in the UK for whom English is not the first language.
Anyway, if you'd followed my comments through this and the other thread you'll have seen that I've supported the principle of having the flag with "English spoken" on it, however to simply put "English driver" as per the picture is IMO unnecessary and is playing the race card.
As I understand it the "English spoken" signs are fair play & give customers the option of choosing a taxi driver who can speak English (it really doesn't doesn't matter where they're from if they can offer a good service) whereas an "English driver" sign to get some business advantage is sending a quite different message that I can't support.
I would have the same issue with a "Asian driver" sign to secure more Asian customers or as BritishAsian suggested (I hope in jest) "Asian owned".
Clear enough?

Im English and a driver, so what would I call myself then? An English Driver.... simple. do you get where I am coming from now, you obviously have not read my other posts either.

Wouldn't it be a nice idea to show solidartity with the taxi drivers of Southhampton and put the same sticker in our cars with the same "English Speaking Driver" on it?

.

Particularly the people From the Southhampton area.

.

Shouldn't be too difficult to make one.

Wouldn't it be a nice idea to show solidartity with the taxi drivers of Southhampton and put the same sticker in our cars with the same "English Speaking Driver" on it?

.

Particularly the people From the Southhampton area.

.

Shouldn't be too difficult to make one.

stickymcglue wrote:

English Warrior wrote:

stickymcglue wrote: actually , the sticker does not say "english speaking driver" , is says "english driver" ,,,, there is no way these stickers should be allowed. fine have a sticker saying "I speak the following languages ...." , fine have flags and dangles festooning the car but this campaign is fooling no one.

So in your head , the cabbie is not English then, I am English and if I want to say I am English I will, no pc Muppet will ever get me to take down my flag, I was born here in England, so I am English, My parents are English, so am I now not allowed to state I am English. So who is the racist me or you for denying me the right to herald my land, by birthright. PC needs taken from this land, the English should not be treated as second class citizens in their own country before the UK even existed England was here, and England shall always be here, Go and tell an American to take is flag down, and not to say he is an American, he would shoot you.

English nationalistic pride is irrelevant to this debate , gullable people may be taken in by the excuses of langauage problems etc etc but its clear what the thrust of this campaign is..... you can easily display "english pride" without insulting other people .... like I say , this campaign is fooling no-one.... and the council know that.

I am actually a Civic Nationalist, and proud to fly my flag, I am English so I say I am just that.
If say you were a French man showing your flag on a car you drive, would it be ok for him to say he is a French Driver? Yes it would.
So on that basis an English driver can state he is English, how is that racist, the only racism here is toward the English people again and the do gooders will let this happen because it doesnt want to upset the 15% foreign nationals in our country, 85 % of us are English so why cant we say so. because the foreigners dont like it, you are helping a nation lose its nationality, by disallowing them to say what they are, English no matter what your skin colour is, religion is, sexuality is, no country man should be discriminated in their own country, if you are born here and proud to say you are English, some bureaucrat should not be allowed to tell you you are not allowed to.
Article 15.
(1) Everyone has the right to a nationality.
(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.

http://www.un.org/en
/documents/udhr/inde
x.shtml#a15

All countries in the UN signed this we should abide by it.

And the tattoos?
They are a flag which screams at us "don't mess with me, look at my strong forearms"

Nationalists - do not be fooled by a meek trojan horse

warness wrote:
And the tattoos?
They are a flag which screams at us "don't mess with me, look at my strong forearms"

Nationalists - do not be fooled by a meek trojan horse

"Trojan"?

Your pithy prose is "all Greek to me" . .

clausentum wrote:

warness wrote: And the tattoos? They are a flag which screams at us "don't mess with me, look at my strong forearms" Nationalists - do not be fooled by a meek trojan horse

"Trojan"? Your pithy prose is "all Greek to me" . .

My point exactly Santa.
You had to bring nationality into the discussion again.
Let it go
There is a massive world outside of South Hants, there are people who don't use cutlery
Embrace the cultures, don't be in bread.

warness wrote:

clausentum wrote:

warness wrote: And the tattoos? They are a flag which screams at us "don't mess with me, look at my strong forearms" Nationalists - do not be fooled by a meek trojan horse

"Trojan"? Your pithy prose is "all Greek to me" . .

My point exactly Santa.
You had to bring nationality into the discussion again.
Let it go
There is a massive world outside of South Hants, there are people who don't use cutlery
Embrace the cultures, don't be in bread.

PUT DOWN the medication bottle!

BACK AWAY from the medication bottle!

Take a deep breath, walk outside and smell the roses . . . .

clausentum wrote:

warness wrote:

clausentum wrote:

warness wrote: And the tattoos? They are a flag which screams at us "don't mess with me, look at my strong forearms" Nationalists - do not be fooled by a meek trojan horse

"Trojan"? Your pithy prose is "all Greek to me" . .

My point exactly Santa.
You had to bring nationality into the discussion again.
Let it go
There is a massive world outside of South Hants, there are people who don't use cutlery
Embrace the cultures, don't be in bread.

PUT DOWN the medication bottle!

BACK AWAY from the medication bottle!

Take a deep breath, walk outside and smell the roses . . . .

( English ) roses

(English) is fine
The extra spaces illustrate your lack of grasp of the ENGLISH lang wage

warness wrote:
(English) is fine
The extra spaces illustrate your lack of grasp of the ENGLISH lang wage

Wanna borrow a full stop?

Must be pleasant to be floating in space.

English Warrior wrote:

stickymcglue wrote:

English Warrior wrote:

stickymcglue wrote: actually , the sticker does not say "english speaking driver" , is says "english driver" ,,,, there is no way these stickers should be allowed. fine have a sticker saying "I speak the following languages ...." , fine have flags and dangles festooning the car but this campaign is fooling no one.

So in your head , the cabbie is not English then, I am English and if I want to say I am English I will, no pc Muppet will ever get me to take down my flag, I was born here in England, so I am English, My parents are English, so am I now not allowed to state I am English. So who is the racist me or you for denying me the right to herald my land, by birthright. PC needs taken from this land, the English should not be treated as second class citizens in their own country before the UK even existed England was here, and England shall always be here, Go and tell an American to take is flag down, and not to say he is an American, he would shoot you.

English nationalistic pride is irrelevant to this debate , gullable people may be taken in by the excuses of langauage problems etc etc but its clear what the thrust of this campaign is..... you can easily display "english pride" without insulting other people .... like I say , this campaign is fooling no-one.... and the council know that.

I am actually a Civic Nationalist, and proud to fly my flag, I am English so I say I am just that. If say you were a French man showing your flag on a car you drive, would it be ok for him to say he is a French Driver? Yes it would. So on that basis an English driver can state he is English, how is that racist, the only racism here is toward the English people again and the do gooders will let this happen because it doesnt want to upset the 15% foreign nationals in our country, 85 % of us are English so why cant we say so. because the foreigners dont like it, you are helping a nation lose its nationality, by disallowing them to say what they are, English no matter what your skin colour is, religion is, sexuality is, no country man should be discriminated in their own country, if you are born here and proud to say you are English, some bureaucrat should not be allowed to tell you you are not allowed to. Article 15. (1) Everyone has the right to a nationality. (2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality. http://www.un.org/en /documents/udhr/inde x.shtml#a15 All countries in the UN signed this we should abide by it.

But I bet you drive a foreign car and go abroad for your holidays where you also expect everyone to speak English and if they don't understand you first time, you think that they will if you SHOUT!

Let's all dream.
Dream of castles and knights and suits of armour.
And masonic lords and treasures from the lands overseas.
And wonder why it should be that way. And who will guard the gates when the knights fall foul of the fever?

In support of all english speaking cabbies (white or other) we should all display one of these stickers.Does anyone know where these can be obtained from ?

What a load of bo**ocks. What about the local polish shops displaying 'no english' signs in there windows!!
Is this not classed as 'racist' towards english people.
Its our bl@@dy country for fooks sake, If you dont like it p!!s off!!!!!!!!

Linesman wrote:

English Warrior wrote:

stickymcglue wrote:

English Warrior wrote:

stickymcglue wrote: actually , the sticker does not say "english speaking driver" , is says "english driver" ,,,, there is no way these stickers should be allowed. fine have a sticker saying "I speak the following languages ...." , fine have flags and dangles festooning the car but this campaign is fooling no one.

So in your head , the cabbie is not English then, I am English and if I want to say I am English I will, no pc Muppet will ever get me to take down my flag, I was born here in England, so I am English, My parents are English, so am I now not allowed to state I am English. So who is the racist me or you for denying me the right to herald my land, by birthright. PC needs taken from this land, the English should not be treated as second class citizens in their own country before the UK even existed England was here, and England shall always be here, Go and tell an American to take is flag down, and not to say he is an American, he would shoot you.

English nationalistic pride is irrelevant to this debate , gullable people may be taken in by the excuses of langauage problems etc etc but its clear what the thrust of this campaign is..... you can easily display "english pride" without insulting other people .... like I say , this campaign is fooling no-one.... and the council know that.

I am actually a Civic Nationalist, and proud to fly my flag, I am English so I say I am just that. If say you were a French man showing your flag on a car you drive, would it be ok for him to say he is a French Driver? Yes it would. So on that basis an English driver can state he is English, how is that racist, the only racism here is toward the English people again and the do gooders will let this happen because it doesnt want to upset the 15% foreign nationals in our country, 85 % of us are English so why cant we say so. because the foreigners dont like it, you are helping a nation lose its nationality, by disallowing them to say what they are, English no matter what your skin colour is, religion is, sexuality is, no country man should be discriminated in their own country, if you are born here and proud to say you are English, some bureaucrat should not be allowed to tell you you are not allowed to. Article 15. (1) Everyone has the right to a nationality. (2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality. http://www.un.org/en /documents/udhr/inde x.shtml#a15 All countries in the UN signed this we should abide by it.

But I bet you drive a foreign car and go abroad for your holidays where you also expect everyone to speak English and if they don't understand you first time, you think that they will if you SHOUT!

Ford Transit built just outside Southampton, a Mondeo and a MGBGT, all English built, only ever been abroad when fighting for country, I holiday in England, so many nice places to go and see.

warness wrote:
Let's all dream.
Dream of castles and knights and suits of armour.
And masonic lords and treasures from the lands overseas.
And wonder why it should be that way. And who will guard the gates when the knights fall foul of the fever?

lol

Lebanese Gold? Moroccan Red?

jimmy t wrote:
What a load of bo**ocks. What about the local polish shops displaying 'no english' signs in there windows!!
Is this not classed as 'racist' towards english people.
Its our bl@@dy country for fooks sake, If you dont like it p!!s off!!!!!!!!

they dont say "no english" they say polish only shop, tiny bit of difference. and if you do see a shop with no english or no to any country then report them to the trading standards.

WHERE CAN WE GET THE STICKERS ???????

southy wrote:

jimmy t wrote: What a load of bo**ocks. What about the local polish shops displaying 'no english' signs in there windows!! Is this not classed as 'racist' towards english people. Its our bl@@dy country for fooks sake, If you dont like it p!!s off!!!!!!!!

they dont say "no english" they say polish only shop, tiny bit of difference. and if you do see a shop with no english or no to any country then report them to the trading standards.

Not in the one i saw!!! Anyway even if i did report it they would plead ignorance! Thanks for your advice though!

southy wrote:

B. L. wrote:

southy wrote:

Treas wrote:
My previous posting was removed, so here goes again... All drivers, whether taxi drivers or not, should place a notice in their cars saying "Driver Speaks English. Lets drive to clean up Southampton". That way our PC council will concentrate on important things like supporting the cruise and tourist industries, rather than wasting time on PC nonsense. Southampton streets are a disgrace, and all the Council can do is rake up matters such as this, aided by this rubbish newspaper.

are you advocating that people should break the law by putting stickers up that might or would block there field of vision.

OK southy, where does Treas say putting stickers up that might or would block their vision, I'm sure most people know the law on this.

Treas, your previous posts have not been removed, go back and count them, they're all their including the same one you put on the knifing article previously.

bl
""All drivers, whether taxi drivers or not, should place a notice in their cars saying "Driver Speaks English.""

putting any stickers up in car windows would block vision partly. there are law requirements what you can and can not put up in the field of vision of the driver, and any that the law allows can only be place in certain spots.

Southy, I re-iterate, where does Treas say putting a notice in their cars would block their vision. "...the law allows (that it) can only be place(d) in certain spots.", would one of those spots be the place?

Just a thought Echo. With all these comments on this and the other articles on the same subject, why don't you invite Royston Smith and other appropriate council members to read these comments. People venting off with nobody listening is similar to p**ing in the wind. We know you can do this if you really try. Would the Editor care to comment on the suggestion?

English Warrior wrote:

Miles Way wrote:

English Warrior wrote:
Do you speak English? Obviously yes, your tag says you are from Canada, Would you not want to be addressed as a Canadian in your own country, English is one of the most spoken languages in the world, Americans speak English, but they are not from England, so what is wrong with saying you are from England, nothing, if there is then you are being racist toward the English.

I assume you're responding to my comments? If so my tag says I'm in Canada not that I'm Canadian - not that it makes any difference but FYI I'm a Hampshire lad through & through hence an interest in Hampshire issues.
Do I speak English? Yes, but then again having a Canadian tag wouldn't make that obvious as there are many over here as in the UK for whom English is not the first language.
Anyway, if you'd followed my comments through this and the other thread you'll have seen that I've supported the principle of having the flag with "English spoken" on it, however to simply put "English driver" as per the picture is IMO unnecessary and is playing the race card.
As I understand it the "English spoken" signs are fair play & give customers the option of choosing a taxi driver who can speak English (it really doesn't doesn't matter where they're from if they can offer a good service) whereas an "English driver" sign to get some business advantage is sending a quite different message that I can't support.
I would have the same issue with a "Asian driver" sign to secure more Asian customers or as BritishAsian suggested (I hope in jest) "Asian owned".
Clear enough?

Im English and a driver, so what would I call myself then? An English Driver.... simple. do you get where I am coming from now, you obviously have not read my other posts either.

Are you a taxi driver then?
I guess not from your list of cars you've given in another post so on the basis you're ordinary Joe Public go ahead and put up a sign with "English Driver", I guess that's fine, although a simple St George sticker would probably indicate that anyway (I might be inclined to take it off before going to certain parts of Wales).
However, on subject, if you're a taxi driver and using that same wording the message you're effectively giving is "I'm English, use me, not a foreigner"
Can you not see how that could be offensive? it is to me, (like you a proud Englishman) & I despair at seeing my national flag being used for overtly racist purposes.

im glad to hear that im not the only one who thinks this is rediculous! i might just take to removing other national flags on cabs myself if i see them, that would make an interesting arrest! good luck to those boys and girls who are keeping the stickers up!

Seems to me the cabbies need to come from a different angle on this one.
Why don't they put a notice saying "sorry, this driver doesn't speak any other languages except English" then all the foreign passengers will know not to use them.
Same effect/message, different angle.
I used to be a Soton cabbie and back in the days when the jobs came over the radio our despatcher asked for "a car for the General" and one of the foreign drivers asked "General who?" ..would be funny if it wasn't so true, he, apparently, passed his topography test?.. there was also the case of a foreign Soton cab driver who jumped a red light down by dock gate ten and rolled the cab with passengers in it because he was reading a map at the time..i'm sure others will remember both of these instances.

funny enough the safe word i had to type in for this message was "skin-Sign" are these just coincidental?

We took a taxi from Boyatt Wood, Eastleigh to Southampton Airport. The Taxi driver had difficulty understanding where we wanted to go eventhough this was pre booked and we had to direct him where to go. I have had similar instances getting a taxi into Southampton to meet friends and as a woman on my own felt afraid as I didn't know if I would make my destination because of the language barrier. Sorry but these stickers are a must.