Matthew Briggs, whose wife Kim was hit and killed by a cyclist in London in 2016 and has been campaigning for a law on dangerous cycling to be brought in line with those for motorists, has once again made a renewed call for a ‘death by dangerous cycling law’, suggesting that the only reason such legislation has not already been passed is due to the government being “utterly cowed by the cycling lobby”.

The comments came during a segment on Talk TV this morning, Briggs retelling the story of Kim being killed in a collision with Charlie Alliston who was riding a bicycle with no front brake, the cyclist jailed in 2017 for 18 months under the 1861 offence of causing bodily harm through wanton or furious driving.

 “Cycling does not carry anything like the same penalty,” he said, comparing to dangerous driving laws. “There are no laws about causing serious injury or death by illegal or dangerous or careless cycling. I’ve been campaigning since 2017, every single government minister has been supportive, a legal review has been done which said this law is needed, I believe this law is written, it has the most extraordinary cross-party support, it has enormous support, support across the media, and yet somehow, for some reason, this is not being done.

“Last year twice Grant Shapps said this law would be passed. Mark Spencer, who was then the Leader of the House, backed this up by saying legislative time is going to be made to pass this law, but still nothing has happened. I can only conclude, that despite the protestations of the Prime Minister, this government is utterly cowed by the cycling lobby.

“There are various cycling lobby groups who for some reason do not think that this is the priority. I was told many years ago when I started this that we need more infrastructure, we need more investment in cycling. Well, that’s great, I cycle in London all the time… that’s been done now and then some.

“So, my only conclusion is that the government has been cowed by various elements of the cycling lobby. Enough is enough. Since Kim was tragically killed there have been four similar incidents where people have had to go through the same complex legal process, it took 18 months for my wife’s case to come to trial because it was so complicated by this law and injuries are up 15 per cent.

“More and more people cycling, that’s fantastic, but there’s a concomitant increase in the number of people being injured and there is no law to deal with this.”

Kim Briggs (picture via Metropolitan Police Service).PNG
Kim Briggs (picture via Metropolitan Police Service) (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)

[Kim Briggs — Metropolitan Police]

Mr Briggs’ comments come almost exactly a month since cycling and walking charities and campaign groups argued that, far from being cowed by the cycling lobby, Rishi Sunak and his government’s ‘Plan for Motorists’, a party conference-announced headline transport policy to end the so-called “war on motorists”, would “rob people of choice” and force people away from cycling and walking.

Last month too, Justice Minister Edward Argar told Parliament that the government is continuing to consider legislation to tackle “dangerous cycling”, as current laws are “old” and “difficult to successfully prosecute offences”.

“The safety of our roads is a key objective for the government. Protecting all road users is a priority,” he said. “Like all road users, cyclists have a duty to behave in a safe and responsible manner. While laws are in place for cyclists, the current laws are old and it can be difficult to successfully prosecute offences.

“That’s why DfT colleagues are considering bringing forward legislation to introduce new offences concerning dangerous cycling to tackle those rare instances where victims have been killed or seriously injured by irresponsible cycling behaviour.”

> “Where is the effort being put into dangerous driving which kills, maims and destroys lives?”: All the reaction to government plan to introduce death by dangerous cycling law

However, it has been suggested that such legislation may not be introduced before the next general election, due by January 2025, due to a lack of parliamentary time.

It was reported in June that the Department for Transport had told campaigners it will struggle to be passed before the next election, a delay Mr Briggs was aware of when he told the press he was left “deeply disappointed” by a meeting with Roads Minister Richard Holden in the early summer.

At the time, Mr Briggs said the government had “become cowed by the militant fringes of the cycling lobby”, comments to the effect of those heard again this morning.

“Or were Mr Shapps’ announcements last year simply an act of political opportunism?” he asked at the time. “At the heart of this are grieving families calling for a very straightforward legal change which the government’s own advisers recommended nearly seven years ago.”