MP who criticised cycling event beats Tube strike ... on a bike

A Tory MP who in 2015 accused the organisers of Velothon Wales of "telling lies" about the potential impact of the inaugural edition of the event on local businesses beat yesterday's Tube strike in London - by taking to two wheels on a Santander Cycles hire bike.

David Davies, who has been the Member of Parliament for Monmouth since 2005, tweeted a picture of himself after he had arrived at a docking station near Parliament Square, having ridden from Paddington Station in less than 20 minutes.

Tube strike? Dont get beaten just get on a bike! @SantanderCycles Paddington-Parliament in 18minutes. pic.twitter.com/bSmwxRyWFm

— David Davies MP (@DavidTCDavies) January 9, 2017

When one Twitter user questioned his environmental credentials - Davies has been accused in the past of being a climate change denier - the Conservative politician replied, "I love cycling."

That didn't appear to be the case in 2015 when he criticised the Velothon Wales mass participation event, however, expressing concerns about the impact of the event on local businesses and residents.

Davies - not to be confused with Minister for Brexit, David Davis - said at the time:  "The arrogance of this organisation – they're telling lies to people. They told me that all MPs support it, and that was a lie. They back-tracked when they found out that I was an MP.”

> Team Sky’s Luke Rowe expresses support for much-criticised Velothon Wales