Belfast taxi drivers could be set for legal action after false ‘IRA’ claims

Taxi drivers from Northern Ireland could be set to take legal action after attendees at a Belfast tech conference were advised to not take black cabs “because they are run by the IRA”.

According to Belfast Telegraph, the astonishing claim was made in a leaked document sent to delegates attending the CYBERUK conference organised by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

Since the report was made last week, the NCSC has stated that the document was “not an NCSC document”. The statement goes on to add: “It was sent in error by a contractor and contains significant factual inaccuracies. The document has been withdrawn."

That hasn’t stopped Belfast legal firm KRW LAW LLP being called on by “a number of black taxi drivers” who are concerned that the damage to their reputation has already been done despite the withdrawal of the document.

Colin McMenamin, solicitor in KRW LAW’s defamation and social media law department, said: “In one of the cases a driver said that within one or two hours of this being made known he was accused of being in the IRA.

“He has been doing his job for a number of years now. He told us he’s left with little choice but to seriously think about resigning from a job he’s loved doing. He doesn’t want to be accosted like this again. Bluntly, he fears his life is now at risk.

“The ramifications of this are far-reaching. Not only have a clearly identifiable class of people been defamed but they are badly exposed here to ridicule and worse. We have no hesitation in issuing proceedings against the offending parties.”