HOODIE-wearing taxi drivers in Southampton have hit back at warnings they need to smarten up - insisting there is nothing wrong with the way they dress.

They say the city council should be focusing on more important issues - such as drivers who don't know their way around the city.

The Daily Echo revealed how licensing bosses had pledged to crack down on sloppy dressers after concerns in the trade they were not sending out the right image of Southampton.

They believe the hooded sweatshirts, which have become synonymous with criminals and antisocial behaviour, can be intimidating and are unsuitable for workers who are ambassadors for the city.

It comes after taxi drivers and other hospitality staff in the city took part in a course aimed at giving tourists a warmer welcome.

But private hire driver Mark Burden, a 44-year-old father-of-five, said: "My argument is there are drivers out there who don't know where they are going.

"And they are worried about the way we dress. It's so petty.

"As long as I'm clean and tidy, my car doesn't smell and I know where I'm going, what's wrong with what I wear?"

Mr Burden said many drivers shared his views.

Protection He said he often needed to wear a baseball cap and hooded top to protect him from the elements, particularly when loading luggage or shopping.

"I don't wear them all the time. But I've never had any complaints," he said.

"If you're clean and tidy no one cares. If I was on a contract job to pick up some managing director maybe I would wear a shirt. But normally I wear what I'm comfortable in. I'm in this car 12 hours a day."

The council says it will deal with complaints through stern advice to taxi firm bosses.

It has no power to enforce a dress code for the city's hackney carriages - which can be hailed on the streets - unless it brings in costly by-laws. ABP already has one in place at the docks.

However there is a "clean and tidy appearance" condition attached to private hire driver licenses. It rules out "scruffy jeans, jogging trousers, singlets, shorts or bathing costumes".

Perry McMillan, a taxi union rep, said most drivers used common sense.

"We are in an industry where if you're presentable and polite you will get tipped. The majority of drivers know that.

"If you're a cabbie and dealing with the public you soon realise people tip you through courtesy and appearance."

But he added: "There are some smelly people who get into our taxis - we don't have a choice over who we pick up sometimes."

The council says to get a licence drivers must sit a "topography test" to ensure that they have a detailed geographic knowledge of the city and understand their responsibilities.