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The president of the local taxi union stormed out of council chambers swearing and spitting mad Thursday after the city announced it wants rules allowing Uber to operate legally in Ottawa.

“This is not fair, what’s happening here, and we will not tolerate it,” Amrik Singh said.

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Singh said he doesn’t think the city is being fair to cabbies because it’s proposing a dual system for traditional taxis and “private transportation companies” such as Uber.

Gloucester-Southgate Coun. Diane Deans, chair of the committee that oversees taxi regulations, lauded city staff for striking a balance with the proposed rules.

“I think it would have been helpful if Mr. Singh had actually waited to read the report before he commented because he said there was nothing in it for taxi drivers,” Deans said after a briefing of the proposed regulations. “Of course, there’s a lot in it for the taxi industry and I think in some ways they’re a little surprised at how we’ve taken the handcuffs off the industry.”