But what has prompted the dispute?

The drivers have raised a number of concerns, which they claimed were being ignored by licensing officials.

The main source of unrest appears to be private hire cabs and the council has been accused of failing to investigate allegations that some companies are breaching the terms of their licences by touting for business.

Cab driver Douglas Martin said some are going out of business

However, Graeme Stephen, of the Dundee Taxi Owners Association, denied there was a vendetta against private hire firms.

He said: "There are a lot of private hire cabs who are doing their jobs properly and we don't have a problem with that.

"We have a problem with those who are touting for fares, picking up illegally, sitting in favourite spots and making themselves known.

"Other towns and cities are successfully prosecuting people for picking up off the street with private hire vehicles, using such things as CCTV cameras, etc.

"Dundee City Council tell us that's not what the cameras are for."

Another concern is the sheer number of cabs operating in Dundee. Some drivers claim they are struggling to make a living and there have been calls for the number of licences to be restricted.

Drivers have also complained about a shortage of taxi rank spaces in the city.

Another concern is disabled access taxis. Hackney cab licences are only being granted in Dundee to drivers with cars adapted to take wheelchairs, which cost more than �30,000.

Douglas Martin, who has been a cab driver for more than 35 years, said: "There are hackney boys going out of business and some have lost their homes who have taken on �30,000 cars and couldn't afford to keep them."

Dundee's lord provost said he was "extremely disappointed" the dispute had gone so far.

John Letford said: "It is not doing the city any good. It is something we can do without."

John Letford said the on-going dispute was bad for Dundee

Mr Letford, who chairs the council's licensing committee, blamed the row on an ongoing dispute between taxi operators and private hire firms.

He called it a "serious situation" and said the council had organised clear-the-air talks with the parties involved last week.

Mr Letford maintained the council had a "very good relationship" with the taxi trade and had regular meetings with representatives.

He added that the council was unable to cap taxi licences for legal reasons, but had been attempting to control numbers using wheelchair regulations.

Mr Letford said: "There was a court judgement in Aberdeen in a case by a taxi company which prevents us from denying anyone an application.

"We are very strong on special taxi access and drivers don't get a licence without meeting wheelchair regulations.