HACKNEY taxi drivers are on strike this morning after staging a sit in at Wycombe District Council’s offices.

About 25 Hackney cab drivers marched into the council’s Queen Victoria Road HQ in High Wycombe in dispute over working and licensing arrangements.

Wycombe Private Hire Trade Association spokesman Zia Ullah said it had not been approached by the Hackney trade prior to the strike action but said the association is “sympathetic” to their cause.

The association staged a mass walk in to the council earlier this year in similar circumstances and it has not ruled out further strike action.

He said: “There wasn’t an approach to the association and we’re not actively backing it - but we share similar concerns and are certainly sympathetic to Hackney drivers.

“Our own relationship with the council is very up and down, I don’t think it will ever be easy, but following our walk in we had a number of meetings to move the relationship forward.

“We have been working together with the council and on a positive note; we are forging ahead and have outlined an action plan for the coming year, which is the way it should be for the trade, the council and the town.

“But if there are still concerns from the Hackney trade and they make a formal approach to us [over a united strike] we would listen.”

Hackney drivers are expected to return to the town centre taxi ranks at lunchtime. Private taxi firms are operating normally.