Bob Katter Introduces Queensland Bill That Proposes Demerit Points For Uber Drivers
Monday 21 September 2015 @ 11.26 a.m. | Legal Research
Leader of Katter's Australian Party, Bob Katter, has introduced a Bill into Queensland Parliament that would impose demerit point penalties on drivers who have been convicted of providing a taxi service without a licence. A first offence would incur a 3 demerit point penalty and subsequent offences would incur 6 demerit points.
Background to the Bill
The Transport Legislation (Taxi Services) Amendment Bill 2015 was introduced by Mr Katter on 16 September 2015, and referred to the Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources Committee.
Introducing the Bill to the Legislative Assembly, Mr Katter said:
“Illegal taxi services are circumnavigating the Queensland taxi industry at a rapid rate and to the detriment of our society. This situation threatens the standards and safety of our taxi services across the state. This situation also erodes the integrity and viability of the taxi licensing scheme administered by the Queensland government. It is evident that existing penalties are not sufficient to deter the increase in illegal taxi services in Queensland.”
Reaction and Comment
In an article published by The Brisbane Times earlier this week, the CEO of the Taxi Council, Benjamin Wash, said the Council “strongly endorsed the bill”, and criticised the role of the media in the debate so far:
“The media are continually giving Uber credibility even though they are operating illegally. This is unheard of and outrageous and would never happen with any other person or company that breaks the law. Uber are an illegal taxi service, and are spawning copycats across Queensland. Right now anyone, anywhere, can start to drive their private cars and transport the public and the government is letting it happen. This will become a nightmare. We've already seen assaults with no camera evidence by Uber drivers across Australia, and without enforcement of regulations nothing will be able to stop any sexual predator or person with the wrong motives starting their own illegal taxi service.”
A spokesman for Uber, however, told The Brisbane Times that Mr Katter and his party had not met with them to hear their point of view:
“We're surprised and disappointed that Mr Katter has refused to meet with us to discuss his concerns, many of which seem to be based on misinformation peddled by a taxi industry seeking to protect its monopoly… we hope Mr Katter will give us the opportunity to help him understand why over 200,000 Queenslanders are choosing Uber as a safe, reliable and affordable alternative to existing transportation options, in addition to 4,000 locals who are enjoying well paid and flexible work on the Uber platform.”
Earlier this year, Deputy Premier Jackie Trad told The Brisbane Times the government intended to work through the issues and reach a compromise position, saying that while there were serious concerns about “the fact that Uber is operating a personal door-to-door transport service in Queensland without adequate licensing and registration”, stakeholders also needed to note a large number of consumers “voting with their feet and using Uber at increasingly high rates”.
Uber has a long history of fights with regulators, both in Australian and overseas. Uber is currently pursuing a case in the Federal Court against the ATO’s ruling that Uber drivers should collect GST.
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Sources:
Transport Legislation (Taxi Services) Amendment Bill 2015 & supplementary materials - available from TimeBase's LawOne service
Katter proposes demerit points for Uber drivers (Amy Remeikis, The Brisbane Times, 14/09/2015)
Queensland government 'adamant' for Uber regulation (Amy Remeikis, The Brisbane Times, 19/08/2015)
