Jeremy Corbyn has defied a furious backlash to support moves to strip Uber of its licence in London.
The Labour leader said he believed Transport for London (TfL) was doing the ‘right thing’ by refusing to renew the taxi firm’s permission to operate in the capital amid complaints it has failed to report crimes carried out by drivers.
Some 500,000 people have signed a petition urging the decision to be reconsidered over the past 36 hours.
Jeremy Corbyn, pictured on a visit before the Labour conference in Brighton today, backed the move to ban Uber from London
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has been blasted by MPs as he tells furious passengers to ‘direct your anger at Uber’
Tory minister for London Greg Hands said: ‘At the flick of a pen Sadiq Khan is threatening to put 40,000 people out of work and leave 3.5 million users of Uber stranded’
But London Mayor Sadiq Khan today urged angry passengers to ‘direct your anger at Uber.’
And Mr Corbyn, in Brighton for Labour’s autumn conference, told Sky News: ‘TfL are there to protect all of us and I think they are doing the right thing.
‘Obviously people need to be able to travel, obviously they want to be able to access cabs.
‘Those cabs must be safe, must be regulated and must be available for all.’
The firm, which employs more than 40,000 drivers in London and has 3.5 million customers in the capital, has slammed the decision and said it will appeal.
Jeremy Corbyn, pictured on a visit before the Labour conference in Brighton today, backed the move to ban Uber from London
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has been blasted by MPs as he tells furious passengers to ‘direct your anger at Uber’
Tory minister for London Greg Hands is among those who have condemned the decision by TfL – which is chaired by Mr Khan.
He said: ‘At the flick of a pen Sadiq Khan is threatening to put 40,000 people out of work and leave 3.5 million users of Uber stranded.
‘Uber must address safety concerns and it is important there is a level playing field across the private hire market.
‘But a blanket ban will cause massive inconvenience to millions of Londoners, all the while showing that the Mayor of London is closed to business and innovation.’
Chris Philp, Tory MP for Croydon South, said: ‘I accept Uber has some problems it has to fix, such as reporting every single criminal allegation they hear about.
Tory minister for London Greg Hands said: ‘At the flick of a pen Sadiq Khan is threatening to put 40,000 people out of work and leave 3.5 million users of Uber stranded’
Uber’s private hire licence will not be renewed after a bombshell decision by TfL yesterday
‘But banning Uber in London is a terrible mistake. Sadiq Khan should reverse the decision immediately.’
Tom Tugendhat, the Tory MP for Tonbridge and Malling, claimed Mr Khan was a ‘luddite’ who wanted to ‘switch off the internet’.
He said: ‘By banning Uber, Sadiq Khan is showing socialism is about control when the internet is pushing for freedom of choice.
‘True, Uber has problems but Sadiq Khan banning them is a vote against choice using last- century controls to order how we choose to live.’
However, Mr Khan – who as mayor is chairman of the Transport for London board but did not take part in the licensing decision – said Uber had brought the ban on itself.
He told BBC World At One: ‘If drivers are angry, as they will be, if users of Uber are angry, as they will be, their anger should be turned towards Uber for knowing the rules and failing to play by them.’
Uber’s private hire licence will not be renewed after a bombshell decision by TfL yesterday
A black cab driver celebrates outside Paddington station yesterday after the decision to strip Uber of its licence in London was announced
A black cab driver celebrates outside Paddington station yesterday after the decision to strip Uber of its licence in London was announced
More than 500,000 people have signed a petition calling for the decision to be reversed
The development came as it emerged Uber has been legally operating in a UK city without a licence and is ‘exploring’ how it could do so in London.
Officials in Coventry have said that Uber drivers in nearby Wolverhampton and Birmingham have been operating within their city, according to the Sun .
Customers can order a taxi on the app, and drivers licensed elsewhere are allowed to come into the city and pick up passengers.
Major cities including Liverpool, Manchester and Newcastle have said they are monitoring the situation.
Liverpool mayor Joe Anderson said he ‘remains convinced that deregulation of the taxi trade is hurting competition, preventing licensing authorities from doing their jobs’.
More than 500,000 people have signed a petition calling for the decision to be reversed
He added that Liverpool City Council will keep an eye on what happens in London and could take action.
Uber’s licence to operate in Manchester is not up for renewal until 2021 but the council’s executive member for neighbourhoods, Councillor Nigel Murphy, said they will be monitoring the situation.
This approach echoes what Bristol and Newcastle have said.
In Brighton, taxi drivers have urged the council not to renew Uber’s licence. The city’s MP, Caroline Lucas, welcomed TfL’s decision.
She said: ‘#Uber business model irresponsible to the core. Hope @Uber ups game & shows more corporate responsibility #gigeconomy.’
A spokesman for Cardiff City Council said there was no evidence to suggest Uber was breaching the terms of their licence in the city.
Meanwhile, a petition calling for TfL to reverse their decision has been signed by more than 500,000 people in less than 24 hours.
The petition, started by Uber London, says: ‘By wanting to ban our app from the capital, Transport for London and their chairman the Mayor have given in to a small number of people who want to restrict consumer choice.
Transport for London announced the decision in this tweet, which is said to have been posted just one minute after it informed the firm
The decision is another setback for the firm, which has previously been banned by other cities including Barcelona and Vancouver
‘If this decision stands, it will put more than 40,000 licensed drivers out of work and deprive millions of Londoners of a convenient and affordable form of transport.
‘This decision is affecting the real lives of a huge number of honest and hard-working drivers in London.’
Critics of Uber – which boasts more than 5 billion passengers in over 630 cities worldwide – insist it has failed to properly vet its drivers and is an example of the so-called ‘gig economy’ that gives workers no employment rights.
Worried Uber drivers and angry passengers yesterday joined a growing chorus of criticism – with delighted cabbies rejoicing at the potential downfall of their fiercest competitor.
Father-of-three Bangalie, who has been driving for the company for almost a year, fears he could be forced to claim benefits if Uber’s appeal is not successful.
He said: ‘My family are worried about the future of my job, even if I go on benefits I will not get the same amount of money.
‘I have bills and rent to pay and mouths to feed, if I cannot do that there is going to be a problem. I could be signing up for job seekers in less than two weeks time.’
Passenger Lucy Williams, 30, from London, said: ‘It’s terrible, I get Ubers like three times a week and they’ve saved me a lot of money from black cabs.’
But black cab driver Kenneth Stein, 54, said: ‘I have nothing against Uber drivers but we as black cab drivers are regulated to the hilt while they have next to no regulation.’
Uber said in a statement that the decision would ‘show the world that, far from being open, London is closed to innovative companies’. The firm’s current licence expires on September 30.
As part of their fightback, they are emailing all of their members individually to urge them to sign the petition.
Transport for London announced the decision in this tweet, which is said to have been posted just one minute after it informed the firm
Many Londoners took to Twitter to complain about the TFL decision
Others welcomed the decision by the city’s authorities, saying the company was dangerous
But the firm has faced a barrage of criticism in recent years over the safety of customers, working rights for drivers and opposition from black cab drivers.
TfL concluded that the minicab app is ‘not fit and proper’ to operate in the capital due to concerns which have ‘public safety and security implications’.
Transport for London said: ‘TfL considers that Uber’s approach and conduct demonstrate a lack of corporate responsibility in relation to a number of issues which have potential public safety and security implications.’
Mayor of Sadiq Khan, who was not involved in the decision but supports it, said: ‘All companies in London must play by the rules and adhere to the high standards we expect – particularly when it comes to the safety of customers.
‘Providing an innovative service must not be at the expense of customer safety and security.’
Confirming Uber would appeal against the decision in court, Tom Elvidge, the firm’s general manager in London, said: ‘3.5 million Londoners who use our app, and more than 40,000 licensed drivers who rely on Uber to make a living, will be astounded by this decision.
‘By wanting to ban our app from the capital Transport for London and the Mayor have caved in to a small number of people who want to restrict consumer choice.
The decision is another setback for the firm, which has previously been banned by other cities including Barcelona and Vancouver
‘If this decision stands, it will put more than 40,000 licensed drivers out of work and deprive Londoners of a convenient and affordable form of transport.
‘To defend the livelihoods of all those drivers, and the consumer choice of millions of Londoners who use our app, we intend to immediately challenge this in the courts. ‘
He added: ‘Uber operates in more than 600 cities around the world, including more than 40 towns and cities here in the UK. This ban would show the world that, far from being open, London is closed to innovative companies who bring choice to consumers.’
The firm’s complaints were backed by London First, which campaigns for business in the capital.
The group’s David Leam said: ‘This will be seen as a Luddite decision by millions of Londoners and international visitors who use Uber, and will also hit London’s reputation as a global tech hub. London needs to be open to new ideas, businesses and services.’
But Labour MP Wes Streeting, chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Taxis, welcomed the decision, which he said would ‘draw a line in the sand’.
The Ilford North MP added: ‘Uber has not shown itself to be a fit and proper operator.
‘It stands accused by the police of failing to properly handle serious allegations of rape and sexual assault of passengers.
‘It had to be dragged through the courts to recognise its responsibility to provide even the most basic rights and protections to Uber drivers.’
The number of private hire drivers in London has almost doubled to more than 116,000 from 65,000 in 2013/14.
Drivers of traditional black London cabs held a protest this year against the minicab app. The app was seen as unfairly undercutting black cabs due to the lack of regulation of drivers
Uber driver James Farrar said: ‘This is a devastating blow for 30,000 Londoners who now face losing their job and being saddled with unmanageable vehicle-related debt.
‘To strip Uber of its licence after five years of laissez-faire regulation is a testament to a systemic failure at TfL.
‘Rather than banish Uber, TfL should have strengthened its regulatory oversight, curbed runaway licensing and protected the worker rights of drivers.’