A spokesman from Swale Borough Council said: "Our licencing team has been allowing the use of the oppy and the Royal British Legion sticker on iCars’ taxis.
"However, following a complaint, we checked the use against our policy, and it is not permitted under our Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Policy
"The policy was most recently updated and agreed in 2025 by our Licensing Committee and Policy and Resources Committee, following a public consultation which included feedback from the taxi industry.
“The issue is not about the poppy or the Royal British Legion, which the council supports, but the fact that we received a complaint that the vehicle was not complying with our policy.
The decision sparked so much fury that the council acknowleded the 'oops' moment and is trying to row back now that the possibility of telling the single complainant to fuck off has passed by...
“We are aware that iCars has removed the sticker and poppy and we are scheduling a Licensing Sub-Committee meeting to discuss iCars’ request for an exemption from policy.
“The next Licensing Committee meeting will look at the policy to make sure that there is clarity on this issue."
It should be pretty easy to allow an exemption for this sole issue without allowing all and sundry to customise their taxis, shouldn't it?
