Taxi drivers have been banned from using this sign
Yesterday, Jeremy Vine hosted a lively discussion with the deputy leader of Southampton City Council and the chairman of the city’s largest taxi firm which provided a vivid insight into the complexities of doing business in multi-cultural Britain.
The affair centred on the council’s decision to ban taxi drivers from using signs that say “English speaking driver” (see above). Some say it is racist to use such signs (redolent of the “Irish need not apply” signs of the past). To others it is an unnecessary restriction on taxi drivers’ rights to be patriotic and deny local residents their preference for English speaking taxi drivers.
Certainly, we think that people who seek a life in Britain should be expected to learn the language well enough to order a taxi, or for that matter to drive one. The costs of a Babylon culture to our economy and our way of life are enormous.
Incidentally, during the interview both Vine and the council official referred to the term “indigenous” to make the distinction between a non-English speaker and English speaker. Though the term was not invented by the BNP it has nontheless been hijacked by them. The use of this term is a clear example of the nasty effect the BNP’s rhetoric is having on our language. Let’s make sure we don’t lose this word to the fascists.
Tags: political correctness
Well I guess an Asian cab driver could display that sign as well as long as he spoke English?
Maybe they will retaliate by having Pakistani or Indian flags or similar saying “I speak Urdu, Pashtun & Hindi”?
New York ones used to be famous at one time for speaking Russian.
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Before you know it you’ll be losing whole sentences and you’ll just have to sit there like a goldfish. FFS.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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I’ve been in a taxi where the driver had not been in England long and couldn’t speak much English. I don’t care where drivers originate from, if they can understand English well enough to take me where I want to go first time, let them have their flags.
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Then there was that “German” doctor who killed the first patient he saw in this country, apparently his English wasn’t very good either nor his medical skills.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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To be honest this sort of nonsense, which is only too common these days, is a vote winner for the BNP.
Then these same fools scratch their heads & say “Why do people vote for the BNP?”
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Hey where did “Required” reply go to, did Maurice translate it?
I was about too!
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Lets hope words don’t make it to Somalia, we would never see them again, first it was our ships and we did nothing, then our people and we did nothing.
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It doesn’t matter where my taxi drivers come form as long as they are here legally and I can understand what they are saying. Fortunately, until now, I have been able to understand what they are saying but it is becoming a problem.
Because there has not been strict control of our borders and immigration has spiralled out of control since Libour came to power, we are having to deal with people who are unable to speak English. Many immigrants (some of whom have been here for many years) make no effort to speak English or have limited grasp of the language, so we have a big problem. The sooner we have a government that insists on people learning and speaking English, the better. Those who are on benefits (and they are many) should be denied benefits and they will soon learn. There is also a need for them to try to lose their very difficult to understand accents.
What the authorities are doing to our country is disgraceful. This is our country and we should come first.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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Well this country makes great efforts at great expense to provide translators & leaflets to all & sundry, so I guess people will think what the hell, I don’t need to make any effort as they will pander to me.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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WTF, I don’t agree with providing translation services or own language leaflets because I consider them benefits. If we didn’t provide them with these services (part of their benefits) they wouldn’t be so keen to come here.
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Very true Goldie @February 4, 2010 at 9:02 pm, very true!
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Indigenous!
The BNP have not hijacked the term, but lets face it , even a blind man (sorry, visually impaired ), would know the difference between an indigenous Briton and an indigenous african, paki etc..
Hot debate. What do you think?
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we are quite clear what constitutes an indigenous australian, thefore, it cannot be that difficult to identify an indigenous pom!
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indigenous austrailian ….?aborigines,surely!
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Jeremy Vine? Well What can I say? I feel humbled that such an intellect has spoken. (I bet he votes BNP). Jolly dee chaps.
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as long as the driver understands where you want to go,what is the problem?i know good old fashioned racism,another quality british value!!!!
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Well that’s the point being made, that some drivers might not understand where you want to go.
So the others are making it clear they do understand.
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Personally I Abhore all things racist my beliefs make this certain.
However the media’s incessant attempts to publish news stories instead ofreporting the news helps nobody how can it be racist for aTaxi Driver to inform allhis customers regardless of race creed or colour what language he speaks in a muli-cultural area this could be important more PC gone mad
expressing the language you speak cannot be racist unless of course those of us who speak hindi or punjabi or yiddish are racist because we can’t
for the there is nothingbritish campaign to be considered sensibly it should stick to reports of actual racism not phone in tittle tattle
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“Sam Pauli says:
February 5, 2010 at 6:52 pm
im sure ,if i jumped in a taxi in swindon,and aked the driver to take me to the county ground ,in my broadest Scots accent,he would nt understand me if he was English,Pakistani or Afghan????”
I think there might be a chance of that occuring but if it was on match day with a lot of your bretheren heading in the same direction then maybe he would put 2 + 2 together without comprehending you.
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Im sure he could,whatever nationality he may be!
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sorry thought you d have been on your High Horse!
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im sure ,if i jumped in a taxi in swindon,and aked the driver to take me to the county ground ,in my broadest Scots accent,he would nt understand me if he was English,Pakistani or Afghan????
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A chair.
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