“When Wiggle launches an 80% off sale, we can’t compete”: British cycling brand highlights knock-on effect of retailer’s demise; Bonkers crash on Paris-Roubaix cobbles; Cavendish’s Tour de France shot in disarray due to illness + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
“Arrogant” driver who reversed into cyclist on protected bike lane, before accusing him of trying to “break” his car, offered educational course
“I think they got off lightly, and I’m not even sure which rule of the Highway Code applies here. I have a feeling that the educational course will have little effect”, the cyclist said.
Is this a dream collab? Mason Cycles x Strandberg Guitars
Cycles and guitars? Well that sounds like two of my favourite things colliding! I only wish that Strandberg had gone for a full-body guitar instead of the silent, no-body frame…
This collab comes courtesy of former Swedish MTB pro Andreas Danielsson, who’s also an avid guitar player, and Ola Strandberg, founder of Strandberg Guitars. “Their shared passion for exploration and music sparked the idea to create the ultimate travel guitar, seamlessly integrating cutting-edge cycling technology and materials with guitar technology,” the Instagram post reads, with Mason Cycles later joining the journey, and bringing expertise in bike design, materials and craftsmanship to the table.
Giant predicts continued short-term "challenge" for bike industry as profits almost halved and sales down 16% last year
Taiwan-based bike brand saw pre-tax profits fall 45% in 2023, but remains “optimistic” with long-term prospects and believes e-bikes are key opportunity to “broaden global cycling population”…
“Butter specialist” TikTok chef banned from driving for six months after cyclist catches him using phone
Well, I’ve seen and gushed at his lush and indulgent butter videos before, never in a million years did I imagine him to be a part of the road.cc live blog though.
That’s TikTok chef Thomas Straker, famous for his videos elevating butter to rich, zesty heights in the series ‘All things butter’ with a very distinct Michelin-esque scooping style (highlights include berry butter, wild garlic butter, black olive butter, and erm, chicken tikka masala butter), has been fined £615 and and banned from driving for six months after he was caught out by a cyclist making a phone call while driving.
The 33-year-old, who runs the eponymous restaurant Straker’s in Golborne Road in Notting Hill, was reported to police by Dr Noel Pollock after an incident near Marble Arch last April, reports The Standard.
Dr Pollock was cycling through central London when he came across Straker in his Porsche 911 in Cumberland Place, and recorded the driver’s actions through his helmet-mounted camera.
Testifying at Lavender Hill magistrates court last week, Dr Pollock said: “I witnessed this driver holding and using their illuminated mobile phone in their left hand while driving. They were talking on a call while holding the phone.
“Presumably because they were distracted, or perhaps because they chose to, the video also shows them driving into and stopping in the advanced cycle box while the light was red.”
I mean, he should know that using phone while driving will spread you too thin, unable to give enough attention to the road users, but I’m sure he won’t be butterly amused about it all.
Giulio Ciccone back on the saddle after surgery, but set to skip Giro d’Italia unfortunately
More than a month after an unexpected surgery to remove a perineal cyst halted his plans for a season debut, Giulio Ciccone has resumed training once again after being given the green light by the doctors.
However, his team Lidl-Trek announced today that the Italian rider, who won the mountains classification last year at Tour de France, will have to miss the Giro d’Italia in May.
More than one month after the surgery, @giuliocicco1 is back in training 💪
His new racing calendar will be announced in April, but a first decision (with big disappointment) has been taken: no @giroditalia 😞
📰 Read the news 👇https://t.co/TqTlAWwyiU pic.twitter.com/gJjctU3Jlw
— Lidl-Trek (@LidlTrek) March 14, 2024
The team said: “Unfortunately, reaching the ideal form in the time required to pursue the goal of the GC or, at the very least, to race the Giro as a main protagonist, does not align with the delicacy of his recovery. Considering the long period of inactivity and the need for a gradual approach to training to avoid further problems, it was decided, by mutual agreement, to shift his focus to goals further ahead in the season.”
As of now, this is the only decision that’s been taken regarding his schedule. Lidl-Trek added that if everything goes well in training, there’s a good chance that we’ll see Cicco back in action in May, with his new racing calendar expected to be revealed by April.
Jeremy Vine sues ex-footballer Joey Barton over "bike nonce" tweet
Vine, who uploads videos from his cycle journeys around London and regularly addresses cycling-related topics and debates on his Channel 5 show, filed the defamation claim last week, although it is not yet known how much Joey Barton, the former Manchester City footballer, who was sacked as manager of League One side Bristol Rovers in October, is being sued for.
Read more: > Jeremy Vine sues ex-footballer Joey Barton over “bike nonce” tweet
“Goddamn, what a**holes”: Prime Video documentary lays bare the inside story of Visma’s dominant cycling season, with a few jabs aimed at Remco Evenepoel and Soudal Quick-Step
Remember last year’s Giro d’Italia? Rampaging rains, loose dogs, loose chains, a bout of Covid in the peloton, and obviously, those enthralling last two stages, with a penultimate-day maglia rosa-deciding time trial and a spectacular Cav sprint win through the streets of Rome on the final stage.
All this seems ages ago, but a viewing of Amazon Prime Video’s documentary throwing a spotlight on the insides of arguably the strongest team cycling has ever seen, Jumbo Visma (now Visma Lease-a-Bike; guess we can just use Visma), brings back the memories just like it was yesterday.
The second season of All-In (not very original, considering Prime has football show called All or Nothing), obviously focuses on the Grand Tour sweeping season of the Dutch team and is aptly titled The Trilogy. And to go toe-to-toe against its competitor Netflix’s own cycling show, Tour de France Unchained, the show needed some drama, whether organic or manufactured. And drama it did get at last year’s Giro.
At stage 5, with the torrential rain lashing down upon Italy, Primož Roglič, Visma’s leader for the Grand Tour, went down. And at that moment, or at least according to the show’s narrative, Remco Evenepoel and the Quick-Step team take position at the front of the peloton and start pacing everyone else, leading to some not-very kind words from Marc Reef, Visma’s sports director: “Goddamn, what a*******, ” he says (based on a very liberal translation). “Well, this is sporting. It’s not necessary at all.”
And then later, when Evenepoel went down himself for a second time (the first time was, bizarrely, after a stray dog ran across the peloton), Reef comments: “This is just, really, really karma!”
Oooh, spicy stuff! I would’ve liked to hear Reef’s thoughts when Evenepoel eventually left the race, after being diagnosed with Covid.
And to add to your dismay, no, we also do not get the team conversation regarding their Vuelta a España leader, between Sepp Kuss, Jonas Vingegaard and Primož Roglič. Almost like these shows are tailored and strictly filmed and edited with the team’s consent!
Now, off to waiting for Netflix’s second season of its Tour de France documentary, so I can come back you you all and complain about why this modern trend of sort-of Americanised sports documentaries, while sometimes entertaining, are a complete farcical show and not worth anyone’s time! *throws grenade and rushes back*
Staff bikes is back!
Staff bikes is back! Keep your eye on the road.cc YouTube this weekend for a closer look at Stu’s Fairlight!
Clouds of doubt cast on #35 at Tour de France? Astana-Qazaqstan unable to confirm Mark Cavendish’s race schedule as the Manxman’s illness-cursed early season continues
We all know it, we all are waiting for it. Number 35. He’s back for a third time, will this time be the charm?
Unfortunately, Mark Cavendish’s hopes for the record-breaking win at Tour de France are not going as he would have hoped. Despite rip-roaring to an early win in the year at the Tour Colombia, spring hasn’t quite brought the joy for Cav yet, with fever and illness pestering the Manx missile and rendering him out of form.
Since then, he’s recorded a DNS at the UAE Tour in February, and then an OTL at Tirreno-Adriatico and a DNF at Milan-Torino this month.
#Infirmerie 🚑 / 🇬🇧 Mark Cavendish (AST), malgré une victoire en Colombie, reste sur triste lancée :
▪ 🇮🇹 Milano Torino : DNF
▪ 🇮🇹 Tirreno-Adriatico St. 5 : OTL
▪ 🇦🇪 UAE Tour St. 6 : DNS https://t.co/CLGZfWlHhk— Renaud Breban (@RenaudB31) March 13, 2024
Now, Team Astana Qazaqstan are playing a “wait and see” game before deciding what’s next. A team representative told Velo after Milan-Torino: “At the moment we are not ready to confirm his exact programme. He had a small gastrointestinal discomfort today, but it should not be a problem for his next races.”
> “Just one more year”: Mark Cavendish to continue racing in 2024 and target Tour de France record
The 38-year-old is next slated to race Scheldeprijs — a classic he won three times at the turn of last decade — on April 4, before he tries to build his Tour de France form at the Tour of Hungary in May.
Altitude camps are likely to fall either side of the Hungarian stage-race as Cavendish and his recently reinstated trainer Vasilis Anastopoulos will aim to implement their winning framework from their four-win Tour with Deceuninck Quick-Step in 2021, the duo reunited with former leadout king Michael Mørkøv at Astana.
“It's hard enough to keep women and girls cycling confidently without nonsense like this”: Center Parcs faces backlash for “sexist” cycling advert with children asking mum to “keep up”
Center Parcs, the popular holiday site chain has faced backlash on the internet after a “sexist” advert that seemed to imply that mums can’t keep with the rest of the family when cycling.
The holiday village is famous for its rental bikes on offer, with many holidaymakers heading there with the intention of getting their rides in. However, in a now-deleted post on Facebook, Center Parcs UK shared the image with the words “That ‘keep up mum’ moment”, captioned: “Whether you’re whizzing up ahead or taking the scenic route, explore the springtime forest together this Easter.”
Ironically, both dad and mum seem to be cycling behind the kids in the said photo, but the kids only appear inclined to ask the mum to “keep up”.
Amanda Powell, a writer from Wales posted a screenshot of the post and wrote on Twitter: “@CenterParcsUK Really? I thought this kind of stereotyping had disappeared years ago. It’s hard enough to keep women and girls cycling confidently without nonsense like this.”
@CenterParcsUK Really? I thought this kind of stereotyping had disappeared years ago.
It’s hard enough to keep women and girls #cycling confidently without nonsense like this.#activetravel @BritishCycling @WelshCycling pic.twitter.com/lHEWTUm9Hu— Amanda Powell (@yogajournalist) March 12, 2024
Center Parcs replied saying: “Hello Amanda, We apologise for any offence that our recent social media advertisement may have caused, this was certainly not our intention. As a result, we have removed this ad.”
The Sun reports the advert infuriated other people too, with one person saying: “Sexism and misogyny from Center Parcs”, while another said: “Why not go on holiday to Center Parcs and maintain outdated patriarchal views of a family dynamic.”
Another person added: “The attitude this advert shows is exactly the kind of remarks girls and women are used to.” A fourth person even said that they won’t be ever going to Center Parcs again.
The advert harkens back to another ad by Italian bike brand Pinarello from 2017, in which they suggested that women should buy their new Nytro electric bike so that they’re able to keep up with their boyfriends, sparking an outrage from the cycling community which led to Pinarello apologising later.
> Pinarello apologises for sexist e-bike advert
This ad from Center Parcs was posted on 5th March, in the week the UK celebrated Mother’s Day and also marked International Women’s Day.
Patrick Lefevere sanctioned by UCI for "disparaging" comments "towards women"
The controversial Soudal Quick-Step team boss will be required to make a public statement apologising or pay a fine of 20,000 Swiss francs (£17,800)
> Patrick Lefevere sanctioned by UCI for “disparaging” comments “towards women”
Bonkers crash at GP de Denain as Stefan Küng brings down brings down the entire chasing group on Paris-Roubaix cobbles
I know it’s the not the most intently watched race of the year with just a couple of big names racing ahead of the first monument of the year, Milan-San Remo, this weekend, but there was still a bonkers crash in the final few kilometres on the last cobbled section — yes, the same “Hell of the North” Paris-Roubaix cobbles.
As Groupama FDJ’s Stefan Küng, leading the chasing pack, slipped a wheel on the muddy cobbles and brought everyone behind him down, it allowed the early breakaway riders Jannik Steimle of Q36.5 and Cerial Desal of Bingoal WB to keep riding unchallenged and contest an exciting run up to the finish line, with the former coming out on top against his breakaway partner.
La chute de Stefan Küng sur le #GPDenain, qui a pratiquement entraîné l’ensemble du groupe de chasse où il se trouvait. pic.twitter.com/7t7wNKAhpr
— Le Gruppetto (@LeGruppetto) March 14, 2024
The chasing group was a pack of nine, including Arnaud De Lie, Van Gestel, Sebastian Molano and Filippo Baroncini, and were just a minute down on the breakaway before the crash. Molano, in particular, looked to be in quite a bit of pain after the crash, however, some continued to ride, with Van Gestel and De Lie finishing third and fourth, 11 seconds behind.
“When Wiggle launches an 80% off sale, we can’t compete”: British cycling brand highlights knock-on effect of retail giant’s demise for smaller businesses
Ah Wiggle, even in death, your presence lingers over us.
The news of Wiggle Chain Reaction’s demise and the imminent buyout by Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group, first reported by road.cc, is a well-known story now. But as the beleagured retailer enters the liquidation process and prepares for one last, final clear out sale to get rid of remaining warehouse stock, Lusso, the Manchester-based cycling clothing and accessories manufacturer has spoken out about their modus operandi, and juxtaposed it with other sellers.
In a blog piece titled “Our thoughts on the WiggleCRC takeover”, Lusso CEO Jake Wright writes: “Everyone in the cycling trade seems to be talking about a certain Sports Direct owner taking over Wiggle and Chain Reaction Cycles, and it’s not hard to see why.”
John Harrison, who co-founded of Lusso back in 1982, also offers his insight on how Covid changed things, and why the British brand has opted to stay away from third-party retailers and middle-men, but only selling directly to customers and local bike shops.
“Listening to our customers has been the key to our success,” he says. “Lusso doesn’t just buy and sell finished goods, we batch produce from raw rolls of fabric so we can be more flexible and inclusive of what we choose to make.”
Wright then goes into detail of how their operation differs from other manufacturers and retailers. He says: “We don’t over produce and discount our stock massively to get rid of it at the end of the season. We certainly don’t artificially inflate our prices so our kit always appears to be on sale either. We batch produce our gear.
“Unlike other brands who are forced to commit to extensive stock purchases from their manufacturers, we are our own manufacturer and only make what we need. That’s why we can offer premium garments at reasonable prices. We are also looking to move some of our products onto a pre-order model, minimising waste.
“But when Wiggle launches an 80 per cent off sale we can’t compete, and buying British goes out the window. We have seen a slight drop in sales this quarter compared to last year, but speaking to other brands this seems to be normal. The Wiggle closing down sale might have something to do with it, but it would be unfair to hold it fully accountable.”
WiggleCRC, which has so far been one of the biggest mainstays of many British cyclists, going down in flames has surely been not the most gracious thing to watch. But will its demise give us an opportunity to reshape our retailing model, grease the cogs which have been left to rust for so long, and tighten the screws that hold the industry together? Will we see Wiggle rise from the ashes, or is the future way murkier than it already looks?
Feel free to discuss in the comments…
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First impression from the headline that he's likely a twit. Then the detail he was expelled from Reform makes you suspect that failing even their low bar requirements he really is. Then he clearly explains his vehicle is unsafe for the highway because he can't see to give way when turning. Any collision he now has should have that video run out explaining he drove a vehicle he knew to be unsafe. Advice for motorists; instead of thinking that pedestrians and cyclists are low risk 100kg objects, imagine them as a 300 Tonne trains that will crush you and your vehicle if you cross into their paths. You'd give way to the train, so you equally can to the others.
I've had a brief look on Facebook, and Ed Hill (who now appears to be affiliated with Advance UK) seems to have taken some useful road safety improvements under his remit, including an initiative to help local pedestrians on unpaved roads, where the wider council won't help due to planning failures. Regarding the cycle path, I think this is linked to a wider misunderstanding about giving way at junctions and I'm afraid I cannot agree with Mr Hill's conclusion. Regardless of the suitability of the cycle path, vehicles should give way at the junction to both pedestrians crossing and cyclists. It seems to be a poorly understood rule among motorists where some believe they have priority at junctions like this, where they certainly do not. I once had a similar issue myself, while leisurely walking to Waitrose to buy some lunchtime fripperies. A driver beeped their horn as I crossed the junction, despite me having priority, and was shocked and apologetic when I explained I had priority. A polite conversation later, the driver departed, educated and updated on the rules of the road.
"A cycle lane that traverses the entrance to a side road in Exeter should be changed so that “cyclists give way to vehicles”, according to an independent county councillor" Newsflash: Bicycles are vehicles. Now what?
Bland and overcooked spaghetti
@mdavidford That would seem likely.
@StuInNorway Presumably they pulled out from the parking on the other side without paying any attention to the oncoming traffic / police car.
@StuInNorway photos taken a week apart. Ragebait. ;-)
@Rendel Harris If there were two people assigned to it full-time, (with a break for Christmas) then in accounting terms that might be considered four months...
@Nigel Garage Not very good adding up for an accountant, Nigel. The police received the formal complaint on November 18th, 2024, and closed the case after calling the journalist in "early February" 2025. So essentially two-and-a-half months tops, with the Christmas period in the middle. The police deal with investigations as a matter of priority, a complaint of harassment from an academic about a journalist would be well down the list. It's more than likely that the complaint was received and logged and put in an in tray, once someone got round to dealing with it they called the journalist to offer right of reply and then closed the case. Or do you think they spent "four months" (a temporal impossibility) carrying out extensive investigations into the case without ever calling the accused? Try applying common sense instead of your prejudices.
You do, however, accept that the police had a 4 month window - from November to February - where the met police engaged in a criminal investigation into a Times Education journalist for asking two polite questions about alleged plagiarism via email. You don't know how long, during that four months, they actually spent investigating it, but we do know the investigation was open for 4 months... they might have been working on the case 24/7 for all we know, just at a police pace (Don't forget those donuts and cups of tea take a long time to consume). Out of morbid curiosity, why do you think the police did that, rather than try to solve crimes?
43 thoughts on ““When Wiggle launches an 80% off sale, we can’t compete”: British cycling brand highlights knock-on effect of retailer’s demise; Bonkers crash on Paris-Roubaix cobbles; Cavendish’s Tour de France shot in disarray due to illness + more on the live blog”
Pity Thomas Straker could
Pity Thomas Straker could have been sent to jail where some ‘friends’ could have shown him an alternative use for butter.
Capt Sisko wrote:
“I wish that he would get raped” is a pretty unhinged take as punishment for a traffic crime.
A driving ban is exactly the right punishment for this.
Now now, don’t be so woke.
Now now, don’t be so woke. Male rape is fine to joke about, it’s just #bants
/s
@Dogless – I think they
@Dogless – I think they surgically remove the traditional and sarcastic British sense of humour at birth nowadays.
Capt Sisko wrote:
See also: “Schrödinger’s asshole” – The comment is both a joke and a serious point until the poster sees whether or not people agree with them.
The other thing with wokes is
The other thing with wokes is that they are always ‘right’ and have no room for people with other views.
If you have to have it
If you have to have it explained to you whether people getting raped is funny I don’t think it comes down to woke vs not woke or right vs wrong. Its just shit human being vs common decency.
You have to get pretty fucking far into insane right wing lunatic territory before you hit “rape is hilarious”. Even tory party donors don’t usually get away with that one and they are allowed to be openly racist and sexist now.
They also seem to like to
They also seem to like to swear a lot and go off on a rant when challanged. You’re starting to show your true colours now.
What I always find weird
What I always find weird about people like you is that you think making jokes about rape is fair game and people who don’t find it funny are ‘woke’ and somehow missing the ‘classic British humour’, but as soon as someone swears you can’t deal with it. As if swearing somehow detracts from ones fucking argument, rather than being a way of expressing oneself and adding humour to something without needing to single out a marginalised group of people to be the butt of the joke.
It’s pretty primitive way of
It’s pretty primitive way of adding “humour”, and it did detract from your argument.
I was using it to make a
I was using it to make a point. There’s this confusion among certain groups of people that ‘no one is allowed to say anything anymore lest people get offended’. Offensive comedy is fine, most people can tolerate swearing and irony without clutching their pearls in terror. What isn’t funny anymore (if it ever was) is comedy that uses a marginalised group’s mere existence or the minimising of serious issues as the punchline.
There are plenty of highly offensive comedians (Stewart Lee and Frankie Boyle are pretty popular afaik) out there, yet none of them need to punch down and – in my experience – most of them use swearing to punctuate.
Capt Sisko wrote:
By contrast, the key to demonstrating how open and tolerant you are to the viewpoints of others is to prejudge them all with the ideology you ascribe to them. It really is how true openmindedness works.
What on earth do you think
What on earth do you think ‘woke’ even means?
Capt Sisko wrote:
I’ve got nothing against bad taste jokes, but what you wrote wasn’t really a good attempt at humour (e.g. a pun, wordplay or reversal of expectations etc) but merely a reference to rape in prisons. Usually, joking about rape isn’t in the best taste, but at least try to make it into a joke rather than just an endorsement of prison rape. Maybe you think the topic is funny enough that you just have to refer to it and people will roll about laughing?
Now a bus has gone up a cycle
Now a bus has gone up a cycle lane and hit a cyclist, “driver error” apparently…
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-68544047
What ?
What ?
Did he drove off the rails or start in the cycle lane ? Or on his phone ?
I’m confused as to how the
I’m confused as to how the bus was able to leave the guided busway here.
Three separate references to
Three separate references to the collision occurring on the ‘busway’ including…’the busway has now been cleared’. So was it on the busway or an adjacent cycle/pedestrian path?
It says:
(EDIT – don’t know this area myself) – It says:
… and the images appear to show the bus plus bike not in the expected position (e.g. bus should be straddling the grassy section as in my pic – but BBC images show it next to that).
OTOH I’d expect a fence at least (if not something more sturdy) between cyclists / walkers and buses, and that’s not apparent in the BBC pics?
Aside – no blood so police didn’t bother turning up. Of course we don’t need any kind of systematic investigation of these incidents! They’re all freak one-offs due to individual human error (which can’t be avoided) and that no-one could possibly predict, and if death or injury does occur the only appropriate forum is the legal system…
No fence between busway and
No fence between busway and cycle lane by the looks of it. That’s been an issue with the busway in Cambridge, which has resulted in death and injury. I think they’re retro fitting fencing there.
The warning signs were there, not just the ‘beware frequent buses’ but also the ‘not in service’. Whenever I see a bus out of service I get nervous!
It’s either jumped out of the busway due to excessive speed, or the driver has turned up the cycle track by mistake.
Looks like a head-on collision given the orientation of the bike. A nasty crack on the windscreen possibly created by contact with the cyclist’s head.
They need to move that armco barrier so it serves to protect the cycle track and also put in a barrier to stop buses accessing the cycle track entry.
On second reading I feel we
On second reading I feel we’re missing a crucial detail. The BBC were careful with the language (“both were involved in a collision”) but the council better be careful as they seem to be defaming someone! Of course, a driver was there – but it was the bus that jumped off the busway and hit a cyclist!
Of course it’s not impossible that some kids (or scrap metal scavengers) had sabotaged the busway…?
Handily there’s a streetview
Handily there’s a streetview image at almost the exact point of the collision (I think): https://maps.app.goo.gl/nc8PW9qtVGUxUX8W9
It looks like the vast majority of the busway has a small wooden fence separating the buses from the path (not going to stop a bus though!).
But at this point, as it’s a bridge over a road, that fence disappears. There also appears to be nothing stopping buses entering the cycle track rather than the guided bus tracks.
:-0 Was the driver error
:-0 Was the driver error taking a kip in one of the passenger seats :-0
If Jeremy would like to start
If Jeremy Vine would like to start a crowd-funder for his legal case against Joey Barton, count me in for a few quid. It’s time these awful, hideous, nasty publicity seekers were made to pay for their deliberately insulting bile.
New ultegra cranks under the
New ultegra cranks under the recall.
Cycled home only to get a puncture 2km from home but as I’d removed everything from my bike, it was walk home !
Hirsute wrote:
2 km is a nice walk. Better than my 5+ mile walk home with the bike once at 1 AM.
Only trouble was it is an NSL
Only trouble was it is an NSL road with a lot of bends and narrow. I did keep my radar on though !
My biggest mistake/ walk of
My biggest mistake/ walk of shame was 9 miles in the dark when I still carried a p’ture repair kit (I now carry a spare tube and some Park patches); went to use the glue and found it solid. Kinda fortunately I was wearing mtb shoes.
Cycled home only to get a
Cycled home only to get a puncture 2km from home but as I’d removed everything from my bike, it was walk home !
[/quote]
Happened to me once. A lovely driver with a cycle rack pulled over to check on me. I decided to accept the offer of a lift. Turns out he was buying a bike for his daughter from a house 5 doors down. Result.
So can we agree that Joey
So can we agree that Joey Barton and many other anti cycling groups and individuals are now considered extremists ?
Let’s be careful what we wish
Let’s be careful what we wish for. I’m intolerant of certain aspects of current transport policy, and the solutions I promote will definitely be perceived as a negation of freedom by some motorists.
OTOH, I wasn’t getting much money or attention from the Government anyway.
IanMK wrote:
New definition of extremism will exclude racists who give the Tories £10M, confirms Michael Gove
hawkinspeter wrote:
New definition of extremism will exclude racists who give the Tories £10M, confirms Michael Gove— IanMK
I think Gove addressed this. It wouldn’t be extremist as it is supposedly a one off remark. However, if the Guardian could find a pattern of him making racist, sexist and violent statements (which he probably has) then he would be an extremist. Fingers crossed.
Kind of with you but I can’t
Kind of with you but I can’t help hearing “It was racist, but only once e.g. in a specific and limited way…”
chrisonabike wrote:
His apology was particularly poor. Firstly I believe that it was issued by his company. It did not show any appreciation that he understood why it was racist and sexist. He did not suggest that he would learn from the experience and educate himself and/or give reparations to help fight bigotry, particularly as he can afford to give £10m to the Tories. Most importantly he did not address the incitement to violence, especially as two MPs have been murdered in recent years.
IanMK wrote:
All of the news channels are referring to his “alleged” comments, so there’s still time for his innocence to be proven…
(Takes tongue out of cheek)
£15M now !
£15M now !
Hirsute wrote:
Well, the actual amount doesn’t really make that much difference, but it’s the acceptance of his money by the Tories that’s the issue. I wonder how small an amount it would have to be for Sunak to make a stand and donate the money to anti-racist charities?
hawkinspeter wrote:
Well, the actual amount doesn’t really make that much difference, but it’s the acceptance of his money by the Tories that’s the issue. I wonder how small an amount it would have to be for Sunak to make a stand and donate the money to anti-racist charities?— Hirsute
Alas – even Comrade Stalin understood that “quantity has a quality of its own”. Above a certain amount that money will wash itself (as well as the giver’s reputation). Think of all the good they could do with that money – maybe even reduce the landslide at the next election!
But, according to Gove, it
But, according to Gove, it only applies if you are Muslim and / or say something the government disagrees with. So Barton should be OK.
The first group on that list
The first group on that list is the tories.
I’m fairly sure that CUK will be on the list, because this doesn’t have much to do with extremism, it’s just about making it difficult for anyone the tories don’t like to operate.
EDIT Just came across this from Led by Donkeys https://www.facebook.com/ledbydonkeys/videos/1061935135107289
Quote:
I think I’m right in saying (though willing to stand corrected, IANAL) that unlike, for example, a personal injury claim, or a libel case in the USA, the litigant doesn’t actually claim for a specific amount, they present their case to the court and explain why they believe they have been defamed and the reputational damage it has done to them and the court decides, if the case is proven, on the appropriate compensation.
20k fine *or* an apology.
20k fine *or* an apology.
Why not both?