LONDON’S transport chief angered taxi drivers yesterday by shirking responsibility for “protecting” the cab trade despite being the legal regulator.

Discussing the controversial ride-hailing app Uber, Transport for London (TfL) commissioner Peter Hendy told a newspaper: “People say to me: ‘Your job is to protect the taxi trade.’ No it isn’t — our job is to look after the customers.”

Mr Hendy prompted uproar when he and Tory Mayor Boris Johnson granted Uber a licence to operate in London in 2012 despite the fact that it calculates fares based on journey time and distance in the manner of a meter — only licensed black cabs are permitted to use meters in London.

The Dutch company has also come under fire for refusing to pay tax in Britain.

But Mr Hendy leapt to Uber’s defence. “None of the laws were written for the modern mobile phone and app era,” he said.

“I think what Uber is doing is making headway in the late-night and recreational market, where we know there aren’t enough licensed taxis,” he said.

But transport union RMT, which represents black-cab drivers, described TfL’s claim that it had “applied the law fairly” as “meaningless drivel.”

General secretary Mick Cash (pictured) said: “Whilst TfL may be able to argue that they do not have a duty of care to taxi drivers in the legal sense of the phrase, as regulator it is unquestionably their responsibility to enforce legislation Parliament has seen fit to allow to remain in force regarding the comparative roles of both taxis and private-hire vehicles.”