What are you driving? A yellow and black London taxi, one of the very first coloured ones made. It's the fourth model I've had. It's very well-known in my constituency and is probably the most visible sign of my being there. I didn't have one for a while and I got complaints.

What prompted you to get taxi? Just before I was first elected, a friend was doing some taxi repairs. He told me how great it was for carrying people, how cheap to run, easy to park. I bought it for £500.

On the road, do people presume you'll have the same charm behind the wheel as a cabbie? You do get away with a bit more nudging here and there.

Do you wind down the partition and say things like, 'You'll never guess who I had in here last week - that Paddy Ashdown'? I do get other cab drivers pulling up and asking who I've had in. I once had Eric Heffer. A cabbie asked who he was and I said, 'The chairman of the Labour Party.' He replied, 'Well, you can keep him locked up in there.'

If Lib Dems drive taxis, what would the Tories drive? Mondeos and Sierras are supposed to be the cars of Middle England. I'm not sure whether that applies to New Labour or the Tories now. They'd probably opt for something built in Dagenham or Longbridge.

And Labour? A Vauxhall Nova with all the trimmings? Probably. They're still coy about saying foreign cars are the best.

Do you enjoy driving? It's a means of getting around. As a politician you have to move around... and do a lot of driving, ha ha. I drive as quickly as the limit allows, particularly since I was caught going faster.

You mean you were speeding? Yes.

Ever experience road rage? I've probably used the 'London driving technique' a few times.

That means 'malice'? I'm a slightly less patient driver than I should be, but you have to be conscious of your position and try to avoid confrontation. When people spot who I am, things do get worse.

Have you ever had sex in a taxi? No. It's actually very uncomfortable. I slept alone in it once and it was a contortionist's hell. When I was a lad at school in Wales, there were a few 'experimental events' in a car.

&#149 Simon Hughes is MP (Lib Dem) for North Southwark and Bermondsey