Hong Kong taxi strike cancelled after union meets government advisory body

A Hong Kong taxi union has cancelled plans to potentially strike next month after a meeting with government advisers and a pledge from the city leader to enforce the law against illegal ride-hailing services, the group’s chairman has said.

Wednesday’s announcement also followed Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s warning a day earlier against any drastic action by cabbies. He also said the strike risked being “hijacked” by parties with ulterior motives and would not enjoy public support.

Lee instead urged the drivers to find a solution with the Transport Advisory Committee during Wednesday morning’s meeting.

“We accept the chief executive’s remarks, in which he promised that he would execute and enforce the law to combat illegal ride-hailing services,” Hong Kong Tele-call Taxi Association chairman Wong Yue-ting said.

“I officially announce that the [planned strike] will be stopped,” he said. “I would also like to apologise to those residents who felt uneasy after documents detailing our actions were inadvertently leaked.”

Last week, the association threatened to go on strike for five days starting March 5 if authorities did not respond positively by this Wednesday. The union’s demands included a crackdown on unregulated ride-hailing services.