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London cyclist approaching junction.jpgKate Hoey calls for bikes to be registered and cyclists to pay "road tax"
Labour MP Kate Hoey says she would like to see more people cycling and supports segregated bike lanes – but she also says that bicycles should be registered and that riders should pay road tax and carry insurance.
The MP for Vauxhall, in the news last month after being fined £240 after being caught driving her Mini through a red traffic light, was speaking to Peter Walker of the Guardian's Bike Blog.
The fine imposed on Hoey provoked widespread derision not to mention schadenfreude among cyclists, whom she had branded in a 2003 Daily Mail article as “law-breaking Lycra louts.”
Hoey told Walker that with the benefit of hindsight, that article had appeared more extreme than she’d intended, and revealed that she backed Mayor of London Boris Johnson’s intention to introduce more cycle lanes in the capital – although it could be argued that her prime motivation for that appears to be to clear the roads for cars.
“I would love to see cycling separated, because I think it would help everybody,” she explained. “If it means more people cycling, great, especially if it makes it easier for me on the road. You're never going to get it everywhere, but it's going to have to happen because there's so many more people cycling.”
“But,” she added, “if we're going to do that don't you think they should have to pay something, as a road tax? Why should I pay a hundred and whatever pounds for my little Mini and they don't?”
Walker explained to her the difference between “road tax,” abolished in the 1930s, and Vehicle Excise Duty, and said she did subsequently email him to say: “By the way I do know that VED is based on size etc of car but the principle is that surely everyone using the road should be licenced and insured.”
Hoey, elected to Parliament in the safe Labour seat of Vauxhall in 1989, also called for bicycles to be fitted with number plates, saying: “What I do genuinely think, and the cycling lobby should argue for it too, is that everyone who rides a bicycle, particularly as a form of transport to work, should be registered, so their bike has a registration number.
“At the moment if someone does knock down an old lady and ride off no one can trace that person.”
While perceived cyclist and pedestrian conflict is a regular hobby-horse for some national and local media outlets and an issue often raised with the police by local residents, thankfully reported injuries are relatively rare.
Last year, according to the Department for Transport’s Reported Road Casualties Great Britain Annual Report 2012, there were 389 reported incidents in which a pedestrian was injured in a collision with a bicycle, of which 97 were serious and two fatal.
By comparison, 212 pedestrians were killed and 3,907 seriously injured following collisions with private cars alone.
As for registration, opponents point out that the bureaucracy – and presumably expense – involved would make such a scheme unworkable and deter people from cycling.
Hoey acknowledged, “I can see why cyclists feel they have to stand up against people,” adding, “but I never see cyclists criticising themselves. Cyclists don't seem to see to do anything about.”
It’s unclear whether Hoey is advocating some form of self-policing, but certainly cycling organisations such as CTC reinforce that cyclists must obey applicable laws, and a road.cc poll in February 2010 found that among site users, it was law-breaking that annoyed them most about other riders’ behaviour.
Walker pointed out to Hoey that speeding or driving through red lights – as she herself did – was common among motorists, and that the potential consequences were much more serious than in the case of a bicycle.
She countered his argument, saying: “But that is a sort of cop out, isn' it? It's like me saying, I'm only driving this little old Mini, why can't just slip through a light as well if there's nothing coming?”
Towards the end of his article, Walker gives his impression of the MP, reflecting that “I don’t think Hoey has any genuine malice towards cyclists, and in many ways she means well. But she has, to my mind, some curious notions” – not least, given she represents a constituency with low levels of car ownership and higher than average levels of cycling, she should be advocating measures that might deter the latter.
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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94 comments
Since I pay VED for two motorcycles and a car, I should therefore get a discount for the commuting I make by bicycle when my vehicles are not producing CO2.
Motorists like me who choose to cycle for short journeys are subsidising those motorists who prefer to use their car all the time.
In any case, how much road wear do you think a bicycle makes? Err, effectively none since wear and tear on roads increases exponentially with the vehicle weight.
Sad but true! Seems like the lessons of the past haven't been learnt, or maybe just forgotten.
could not be more eloquently stated
woman's an idiot, these MPs haven't got a clue ...
I am ABSOLUTELY happy to participate in the VED regime. I am similary happy to turn up at the testing centre in order that they may measure my CO2 emissions. Equally I would co-operate with any tester if they'd like to do this in real world conditions, even climbing the Bwlch if they need to.
I'm then happy to pay my share in comparison to a similar vehicle.
I'm happy for this system to be setup.
But, most of all, I'm happy to attend the Parliamentary investigation into why a system costing millions of pounds to administer has no income whatsoever.
Stupid cow.
She is living proof that any idiot can get elected to parliament.
Do people come out with this rubbish just to get a few column inches to improve there chances of getting on a reality TV show. She's definitely not doing it to further her Party's cause.
She's making a real twat of herself. Sell you polluting mini Mrs Hoey and jump on a bike or maybe sell it for an Audi A1 diesel which has a road fund value of.....wait for it ....Zero pounds.
What a dumpling. Now go again to Starbucks for yet another tax free portion of HUMBLE PIE....then resign and do all your voters a favour.
"....so their bike has a registration number.
At the moment if someone does knock down an old lady and ride off no one can trace that person.”
She's not thought this through has she?
How big a number plate do you think you'll get on a bike? They can't trace hit-and-runners in cars most of the time. I'm not really against compulsory road insurance for all but registering bikes, ..good luck.. how many riders have 3, 4 or more? Register the user, maybe. I doubt it will happen though, it would never raise enough to cover implementation.
“But that is a sort of cop out, isn' it? It's like me saying, I'm only driving this little old Mini, why can't just slip through a light as well if there's nothing coming?”
'Saying nothing'
Carbon reg plate anyone?
I heard about an old boy in Norwich who used to cycle round with a rake mounted sideways on his rack. Whenever someone scratched their car on it he'd say "I'm sorry you didn't see me mate".
Sounds ideal and there's a lot of bikes so we're going to need quite long reg numbers to justify this.
This women is a complete and utter idiot and should not be an MP... but there is one point I would like to make about this red light business and people on this site using it against her.
I doubt very much she left the house that morning with the intension to run the red light, however there is certainly a percentage of cyclists who do leave their houses in the morning with the intension of doing so.
I am NOT defending her running the red light at all and in my view anybody who does should get an automatic ban, its highly dangerous, and yes as a cyclist we make mistakes from time to time as we are human, but cyclist who run the lights know they are going to do it and they are giving us all a bad name and idiots like this use that argument against us all the time.
Hmm, a new apartheid anyone? It does seem that's what old Hooey wants. Make us all traceable - they could all fit us with little RFID tags... wait... it's on its way...
This is a distinction without a difference. A large number of motorists run red lights as as matter of routine (just as they routinely enter ASLs on red or park illegally).
Who cares what conscious thought is in their heads when they 'leave their house'? Why is that important?
You seem to be saying that if you want to break the law, just make sure you don't consciously think about it - just turn it into an unconscious habit and you will be absolved!
Hoey, you broke the law. Take your medecine and pipe down.
If 10 or 20 quid per year would purchase motorists absolute acceptance of my right to be on the road and fair and equal treatment by our justice system for cyclists then I would be the first in the queue to pay!
Unfortunately, I suspect that Hoey's agenda is more concerned with driving cyclists off the street by adding barriers to participation; encouraging a hierarchy of use with the motorist firmly on top and using the meagre funds that would be generated to justify perpetuating the under provision of cycling facilities.
She does have a small point, a hell of a lot more cyclist jump red lights than cars (at least on my London commute) in 5 years I've only seen about 2 or 3 clear incidents of cars running reds, whereas I see at least 5 fellow cyclists run them every single day, so I can see why it's brought up in every single debate on road safety.
There you go Hoey, a cyclist criticising other cyclists.
Incase you want to tweet the silly mare, her handle is @hoeykateMP. Like Ive just done.
Needs to learn to keep her gob shut.
I'm not saying its right to jump lights (and its an emotive subject - read the comment sections of the Indy and the Graun and they're full of anti cyclist ire that seems a bit disproportionate)
Ok, its crap for the pedestrians if they got hit, but its a bugger to lose momentum at each traffic light, and surely every cyclist makes a judgement call on running each red or dark amber light, knowing he's the one that's going to come off worse if his judgement is out.
It'd be a nice easy PR win if people all of a sudden stopped jumping lights though, and it'd wrong-foot a hell of a lot of people, Hoey included.
A pedestrian once knocked an old lady over and took her handbag before running off. Why can't we register this menace so we can trace them Hoey?
What a towering imbecile. Great stuff.
Lady's an embarrassment to the Labour Party, and she's got some stiff competition. Anyways...
General election timetable 2015 - www.parliament.uk
About 18 months to go then.
Guidance on registering and maintaining a party - www.electoralcommission.org.uk
Candidates and agents at local elections in England and Wales - www.electoralcommission.org.uk
Sadly, outside my bailiwick these days. But maybe something for some of London's stroppier cyclists to think about.
My 8.5kg bike is propelled by 1Human power. What powers your 1000kg+ 'little' Mini Ms Hooey. Confusing Respiration with Combustion again.
You've only seen 2 or 3 in 5 years? That's about 1 every 2 years. Pull the other one, I've seen 3 today!
Lady do one will you? flippin moron!! 1 of a number of reason why Labour won't win the next Election
Shameless pandering to the anti cycling brigade from an absolute cryptotory gobshite.
She's alienated the cycling vote by calling them louts so decided to go for the "i ran a red light and I had to pay! All these cyclists get away with it" blah blah blah angle to identify herself to the "pay your road tax!" brigade as there's more of them and a bit of proclaimed solidarity makes her seem less of a fuckwit to that lot.
If I hadn't left the labour party already I'd have done so today. She should stick to offering support to fox hunters and Tory panels.
So, she'd be wrong to expect a christmas card from you then?
Keep it nice guys. Keep it nice.
This part of her statement shows the true intent ;
"...especially if it makes it easier for me on the road"
Another deluded individual who thinks cyclists are the reason the roads are clogged up and preventing her speeding around the roads.
Attitude is the same as the 2003 "lyrca louts" article.
Sadly this nit-wit is an MP.
Ok I'll keep it nice
I'm disappointed, she's supposed to be representing people but seems to be doing so without any form of comprehension on the subject matter.
If she was my MP I'd be horrified at the suggestion of spending a fortune to return zero revenue (if done on emissions).
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