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news
Hyde Park Corner 2.JPGGreen Party: Government’s “anti-cycling narrative” creates danger for cyclists
The Green Party says that the government is promoting an “anti-cycling narrative that is making things far more dangerous for cyclists” in response to Transport Secretary Grant Shapps’ call earlier this week for people on bikes to be required to display number plates, carry third party insurance cover and be subject to the same speed limits as motorists.
The cabinet minister’s comments, initially made to the Mail in an article published on Tuesday evening, made for prominent headlines in both print and broadcast media yesterday, and are in direct conflict with repeated assurances from his own ministers and from civil servants at the Department for Transport (DfT) that imposing such requirements on cyclists would be counter-productive.
> Grant Shapps: Cyclists should have number plates, be insured and subject to speed limits
While Shapps subsequently rowed back on his remarks regarding licensing of cyclists, his comments have been seized on with glee by some media outlets and commentators with a history of anti-cycling rhetoric.
Indeed, much prominence has been given in some quarters today – including in the Mail and on Talk TV – to a poll run by pro-motoring lobby group FairFuelUK, which is part-funded by the haulage industry, which claimed that 91 per cent of respondents (who had to enter their email address on its website to be able to vote) were in favour of cyclists having to display registration numbers.
The self-selected nature of the poll – it’s entirely possible that many participants would be aware of it because they already follow the lobby group through social media and agree with its aims – mean that its results, which also include 80 per cent wanting to see cyclists fined for speeding and 70 per cent supporting compulsory insurance, should be taken with a large pinch of salt, and may not be as reflective of general public opinion as say a survey undertaken among a random sample by an independent market research company, but the prominence given to them by some outlets does help fuel an anti-cycling narrative.
And while many interpret Shapps’ intervention as being aimed squarely at Conservative Party members as the leadership campaigns of Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss continue – perhaps in an attempt to save his job once one or other becomes Prime Minister – and to deflect from issues such as rail strikes, the cost of living crisis, or water pollution, there has been widespread dismay among active travel and environmental campaigners that they have inflamed existing anti-cyclist sentiment from some quarters.
Green Party Transport and Healthy Streets spokesperson Matt Edwards, who also sits on Bradford Council accused Shapps of ignoring facts and attempting to deflect from problems currently facing the country.
He said: “If we are serious about tackling the Cost of Living Crisis and the Climate Emergency, we need to get people out of their cars and – for many people, especially in urban areas – cycling is the cheapest and easiest way for people to get around.
“This latest announcement is not based on facts and is another example of Grant Shapps trying to shift focus from a Conservative government that has no idea how to tackle the big problems we all face. The Netherlands and Denmark have much higher rates of cycling than the UK and they know that a registration scheme for cyclists is an expensive folly that would be impossible to administer.
“Most road traffic accidents in the UK, especially those with fatalities, are caused by reckless car drivers – not cyclists. The anti-cycling narrative this government is pushing is actually making things far more dangerous for cyclists,” he added.
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.
Latest Comments
- rileyrg 1 hour 22 min ago
Added to the liberal use of "theoritically", the repeated reference to non bike use has this tagged as one of the poorest reviews I've read.
- Rendel Harris 1 hour 41 min ago
I too watch from flag to flag but I can only do that because as a freelance writer working from home I can have it on whilst I work, I appreciate...
- Spangly Shiny 1 hour 41 min ago
The freezing of fuel duty doesn't help poor people: genuinely poor people cannot afford to run a vehicle, so the freezeing of fuel duty is no...
- biking59boomer 2 hours 15 min ago
There are too many cars on the road. Our towns and cities are just not capable of handling the huge volume of traffic that hits them every day....
- bikes 2 hours 17 min ago
You can't just turn your head around; the footage has to be very clear to have even a tiny chance of the police doing something about it.
- biking59boomer 2 hours 38 min ago
The idiot I saw today cycling whilst looking at his phone and not using his handlebars could do with a bit of Japanese law!
- Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells 5 hours 29 min ago
I'm absolutely disgusted (again) by the court's decision, far too lenient and I agree, a life ban from driving motor vehicles was totally justified...
- wtjs 6 hours 26 min ago
It's warmer up here than it was on the Whitehaven to Sunderland C2C a month ago!
- Smoggysteve 6 hours 58 min ago
There has not been much real world thought been put into the electromagnetic pedals. The idea they can just unclip after a certain cadence is...
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28 comments
"Making things far more dangerous for cyclists ".
The licensing issue is obviously populist b.s., but this type of response is just as grating.
Straight out of the "safe space" copybook that the green party can't stop spouting.
Despite the news issues of the day, the greens are determined to remain on the political fringes. Pathetic.
I've read this multiple times, and I can't make any sense out of it. Any chance you could elucidate for us hard-of-understanding people?
Here's the only thing I would buy.... If the government commissioned an online course ( value questionable, but stay with me) that a cyclist over 18 could choose to complete on an annual basis (far more often than drivers get competence maintenance), in exchange for which they would gain government underwritten third party cover for the next twelve months that would silence the 'but cyclists' motorists on two fronts and deliver a real benefit to society in terms of assurance.
As actual accidents are as rare as hens teeth, the cost would be negligible. I propose that this is enabled by the government engaging with British Cycling to manage the scheme under their 'Commute' cover, effectively extending it to a national scheme administered by the UK cycling body but funded by the government.
For under 18s, government should proceed assumed TP coverage.
Would go a long way towards encouraging active travel too.
This could also effectively silence the 'registration' lobby, because unlike cars the issue isn't the bikes themselves. No more complaining about road tax, registration etc... Just an assumption that cyclists would routinely register online in order to gain their insurance cover.
Silence the anti cycling lobby and deliver a real benefit.
As well as British Cycling I believe Cycling UK membership includes £10M third-party liability insurance. So another option there for people who want extra reassurance / to be (even more) socially responsible.
Members of CUK and British cycling already get 3rd party under their subs.
And many others have it under their household insurance.
Can you imagine motorists inadvertently having insurance?
There are more motorists driving around right at this moment, or any moment, who have taken the fully conscious illegal option to not have insurance than the total number of cyclists on our roads.
And then there is VED, MOTs, licences and cloned number plates. All to a significant proportion, or more than the number of cyclists.
We've seen the ridiculous proportion of speeding by drivers of motorised vehicles, which also has two whole pages in the HC.
And the stat I heard was that 1-2% of motorists are using their phones, that's not do use their phones, no that number is unfortunately huge, but that are using their phones right at the moment.
But no calls for getting their own house in order.
Uninsured motorists cost insured motorists huge amounts of money, not cyclists, whom a large proportion have insurance without it being a legal requirement.
Just to add London Cycling Campaign to the list of organisations including 3rd party insurance in their subs. Personally, I think I may be massively over-insured - I'm an LCC member, but I'm pretty sure both my household insurance and my bike theft insurance cover me too.
Same here, BC & LCC membership, household contents by Pedalcover,icncluding bikes and further 3rd party and legal cover. The only problem I have is which body do I put the claim thhrough?
Almost certainly none of them, as cyclists cause so little damage which is why insurance companies (who are hardly charities) are quite happy to cover us for a song.
You're new to this aren't you? It doesn't matter what cyclists do, the haters will find something to hate you for; wearing lycra, riding side by side, not paying road tax...... the list is infinite.
Riding too fast, riding too slow
Riding on the road, riding on the pavement
They literally make up any nonsensical reason to hate cyclists. Is that bigotry?
Yes. But media induced bigotry of gullible people who have been taught to believe lies and not to think.
Exactly. Just look at the topic of speed.....
If a cyclist isn't able to travel at or above the given speed limit (because a growing number of motorists are incapable of travelling at the speed limit) for any road then they shouldn't be on that road because they hold up traffic/are putting themselves in danger by not being able to keep up with the motorised traffic.
But also if a cyclist is going faster than the posted speed limit they are an absolute menace, complete scofflaws, and are liable for killing and maiming hundreds of thousands of people every single day because they are going too fast on their bikes..........
Great to see the Greens calling out Shapps the Sh*t on his blatant, cynical machinations, I am in the GP, but I'm slightly surprised that they didn't include the billionaire-owned media in their criticism. After all, without despicable right wing rags like the DM, his views would never have been published, as any competent reporter would have checked the facts and found that the story was nonsense.
We do need a new government, and a new voting system, but we also need a free press, not one owned by billionaires who don't even live in the UK.
But, but, milord Rothermere lives at Ferne House in Wiltshire and is a Freeman of the City of London. He lives in the UK alright, it's just his taxable money that lives in France. In the EU, you'd never catch him living under that tyranny himself.
If you don't like it don't read it. Just stick to the Guardian then.
Not sure about 'any competant reporter' checking facts, that concept died before Covid. Fact checking is the domain of the narrative holder, or one guy at FB anyway. It's almost as if The Donald was right when he said years ago about 'Fake News"...
Twitter, Facebook, Insta, etc. those not good enough for you?
If it's ok for your 'conspiracy theorists' to do so, why not for you?
PS. The author of this post does not support the DM or the views of its readers, just hates the sheer hypocrisy of the Left and comments like these. Especially the sanctimonious sneering of the US for its politics etc., when this is what the UK is like.
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You get a lot of that on here, Roulereo. It's a fairly large echo-chamber.
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The vast majority
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of people find my views
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stupid, repellent
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or both.
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Ooh it must be
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An echo chamber, obviously!
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It's such an echo chamber that commenters like Flintshire Boy, Martin73, and Roulereo are all allowed to keep commenting (even Our Nige regularly reincarnates and carries on until they say something really offensive...).
Get
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your
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f*cking
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keyboard
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fixed!
This 'echo chamber' thing is rather tiresome. Who'd have thought that most of the comments on a forum about cycling would supportive of people cycling? It's a bit like complaining that everyone on the other forum I waste time on (a Crystal Palace one) seems to want Crystal Palace to win football matches.
Crystal Palace winning? What are you, some kind of conspiracy theorist?
What we want and what we get are rarely the same thing. I want Palace wins and decent cycling infrastructure.
To adapt a very old joke, a genie comes out of a lamp and offers the guy who rubbed it one wish. "I'd like decent cycling infrastructure in London," he says. "Ah come on," says the genie, "this is London, you've got an antiquated road network, three million cars, a massive funding gap, huge and powerful vested interests...give me a break feller, ask for something else!" "Ok, I'd like Crystal Palace to win the Premership." "Decent cycling infrastructure you say, I'll get on it..."
They must be as dissapointed as we are with the outcomes from our posts, if not more
I don't see any mention of US politics..
You done building that strawman?
Thats ok for someone who never interacts with someone who's world view is shaped by the DM and similar culture war fuelling media. Or who doesn't live in a country where these people decide on the government.
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Correct. We need an entirely new world. One designed to suit you.
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Yup?
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I just want a country run competently for the good of the people who live in it.
Too much to ask?