Like some demented Victor Meldrew I find myself seething with frustration at a quite ridiculous situation. A London cabbie refused to accept my Scottish banknote, holding up a hand-written piece of card as his authority stating he only took "English" money. I had to pay by credit card, having no English money, and that cost an additional £4.30 for the pleasure of being insulted.

I made a complaint to the relevant taxi licensing authority which has defended the driver's position.

While I understand the "correctness" of the position, it beggars belief that in the year 2008 we Scots are still encountering such attitudes in London. We all probably experienced this 30 to 40 years ago but I believed it had long since disappeared, and especially in the capital city, with its millions of visitors and many places accepting payment in euros.

http://www.theherald.co.uk/features/letters/display.var.2361996.0.Charged_money_for_the_pleasure_of_being_insulted.php