News from the Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) MAG focusses on 2024 The Motorcycle Action Group (MAG), the UK’s leading voice for riders’ rights, prepares for another busy year defending motorcycling. MAG will continue to robustly defend riders’ rights and to ensure that motorcyclists influence local and national government policies in the year ahead. Looking forward to 2024, MAG’s Chairman, Neil Liversidge, said: “In 2023 MAG celebrated its 50th Anniversary by working harder than ever for motorcyclists and motorcycling. Our aim is to top that in 2024, a year which will see a General Election being fought between parties whose policies will make most people much poorer through their hostility to practical personal transport. Our Operation Earthquake is ramping up. Climate change is being used as an excuse to exterminate motorcycling as we know it, for no real benefit to anyone and certainly not the environment. We shall never accept the death sentence that all the main parties have passed on our way of life. In 2024 we aim to create a political earthquake. We want electors to vote against all anti-motorist candidates. Our professional full-time political team will continue to engage with policymakers. Supporting them, our thousands of volunteers will alert the electorate to what the realities of mistaken and so-called ‘green’ policies will mean to them. I also thank every one of our volunteer workers. Without their expertise, dedication, and enthusiasm, we would not be the hugely effective organisation that we are.” MAG invites riders, dealers, mechanics, racers and manufacturers to join MAG in what is now an existential fight for the survival of motorcycling as we know and love it. Contact MAG at 01926 844 064 or [email protected]
News from the Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) Will your PCC make the ‘Fight Motorcycle Theft’ Pledge? The Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) has launched the Fight Motorcycle Theft Pledge ahead of May’s Police and Crime Commissioner elections. MAG is pushing for motorcycle theft to be given the profile it deserves. Riders can take advantage of elections for Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) coming on May 2nd this year. MAG intends to create accountability for performance against clear goals. It will achieve this by pushing all candidates to make the pledge as part of their election campaigns. MAG research confirms what riders instinctively know - motorcyclists are disproportionately impacted by vehicle theft. A motorcycle owner is 11 times more likely to suffer theft of their vehicle than a car owner. Motorcycles constitute over a quarter of all reported vehicle theft despite being only 3% of the available targets for thieves. MAG is asking all incumbent and candidate PCCs to make a clear, achievable and deliverable three-part pledge. Firstly, candidates will set a quantifiable four-year goal. Secondly, they will pledge to hold the relevant Chief Constable accountable for publishing progress towards the goal. Finally, they will pledge to work in partnership with all stakeholders on the issue. MAG’s Director of Campaigns & Political Engagement, Colin Brown said: “Those candidates who are prepared to make the Fight Motorcycle Theft Pledge are likely to win more motorcyclists’ votes than those who don’t. We are confident that the pledge is reasonable and deliverable, so there is little excuse for any candidate not to make it. After the elections we will have a firm basis for a clear measure of accountability. We all know politicians have a habit of making promises and then failing to deliver. Candidates who make the pledge will have a hard time forgetting it once they are elected: we will make sure of that. Every rider in the country can play their part in reducing motorcycle theft by asking PCC candidates if they have signed up to the Fight Motorcycle Theft Pledge.” Full details of the Fight Motorcycle Theft Pledge are available on the Fight Motorcycle Theft campaign page. MAG will advertise which candidates make the pledge to help riders make informed decisions on polling day, May 2nd, 2024. Contact MAG at 01926 844 064 or [email protected]
News from the Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) Successful Fight Motorcycle Theft public meeting tour reaches London The Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) announces the latest in its Fight Motorcycle Theft public meeting tour. London’s City Hall will be the venue for the meeting on 26th February 2024. MAG laid on six successful Fight Motorcycle Theft Meetings last year for Kent, Hertfordshire, West Midlands, Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and Humberside police force areas. The first meeting for 2024 is probably the last before forthcoming elections for Police and Crime Commissioners on 2nd May. The meeting panel will include Sophie Linden, Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime, a senior Metropolitan Police Officer and Motorcycle Industry Association CEO, Tony Campbell. Chairing the meeting will be MAG’s Director of Campaigns & Political Engagement, Colin Brown. As with previous meetings, riders will be able to raise their concerns and ask questions related to the motorcycle theft taking place in Greater London. MAG research showed that in 2021 there were over 7000 reported thefts of motorcycles in the region. This equates to 6% of all registered motorcycles in London. Motorcycles are ten times more likely to be stolen than a car in the nation’s capital. Colin Brown said: “We thank the Deputy Mayor and the Mayors Office for Policing and Crime for working with us to put on this event at City Hall. Vehicle theft is an issue that disproportionately affects motorcyclists, and is an issue that rightly angers all of us. We hope that the meeting will allow the Deputy Mayor and others to appreciate the scale of the issues for riders. Hopefully it will lead to further partnership work to tackle this blight on the riding community.” The venue at City Hall has limited capacity and, for security reasons, this will be a ticketed event. Tickets will be free. Registration for tickets will open on Monday 12th February. An option to attend virtually is being explored: details will be available next week. Contact MAG at 01926 844 064 or [email protected]
News from the Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) Act now: Motorcycles in bus lanes consultation. The Government has launched a consultation on default access for motorcycles in bus lanes. MAG has been fighting for policy consistency on bus lane access for many years and urges all riders to respond to the consultation. As part of the Government’s Plan for Drivers a consultation has been launched asking for opinions on allowing default access for motorcycles in bus lanes. The announcement was made on Sunday 17th March and the consultation is open until 9th June. The Government’s news story led on other elements of the broad announcement. Mainstream media reported on these other issues including LTN’s and 20mph speed limits. MAG will be commenting on these issues separately. However, MAG was quick to spot the launch of the long-awaited bus lane consultation. MAG’s Director of Campaigns & Political Engagement said: “It is perhaps not strange that a key policy for motorcycling slips past the headlines. But for motorcyclists throughout the country this really is an opportunity that must not be missed. The fight for motorcycle access in bus lanes has been fought one authority at a time for over three decades. A consistent national policy is long overdue. I would urge every rider in the country to spend five minutes responding to the consultation survey.” The Government is suggesting two options. Option 1 is to do nothing and continue with the patchwork approach currently in place. Option 2 is to allow motorcycle access by default in all ‘with-flow’ and ‘contra-flow’ bus lanes in England and Wales. Scotland has devolved powers and cannot be included in this consultation, but MAG will push the Scottish Government to follow suit to create a UK-wide consistency. Northern Ireland already allows motorcycle access in all bus lanes. Since the promise of this consultation was made last autumn, MAG has been seeking to get the consultation extended to cover bus gates. Disappointingly, the Department for Transport has not accommodated what we consider to be a logical extension to the discussion. MAG will continue to push for motorcycle access through bus gates and other traffic filters. We are therefore advising riders to mention bus gates and other traffic filters in the final question in the consultation survey. ENDS Contact MAG at 01926 844 064 or [email protected] Notes for Editors The full Plan for Drivers news story can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/...anket-20mph-limits-to-put-local-consent-first The motorcycles in bus lanes consultation can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/motorcycles-in-bus-lanes Central Office The Motorcycle Action Group Limited Tel: 01926 844064 Fax: 01926 844065
News from the Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) The Great MAG Road Maintenance Treasure Hunt. Motorcyclists are being invited to take part in the Great MAG Road Maintenance Treasure Hunt. Riders will be seeking out the best performing authorities making the most positive impact to UK roads. Publication of the Asphalt Industry Alliance’s 2024 ALARM Report has shown that the road infrastructure is continuing to decline. The amount needed to fix the backlog of carriageway repairs is now at a record high of £16.3 billion. The Government will deliver £8.3 billion of additional funding over 11 years. The Transport Secretary said this is enough to resurface 5,000 miles of local roads. In other words, that is just 2.5% of the network. For riders hoping to see better quality roads it is going to be something of a treasure hunt. Rick Green, Chair of the Asphalt Industry Alliance, said: “We need to reach the point where local authority highway engineers are able to plan and proactively carry out maintenance work in the most timely and efficient way to the greatest benefit of all road users – rather than just having enough money to address immediate and urgent repairs.” MAG’s Resurface Our Roads campaign lead, David Craik, commented: ''MAG represents motorcyclists, one of the groups of road users defined by Government as being vulnerable and requiring extra care to be taken to prevent injury. The risks posed to motorcyclists by poorly maintained road surfaces is very real, and one of the most cited safety concerns of the riding community. Whilst MAG applauds the strenuous effort by industry to fill 40% more potholes in 2023 than in previous years, it is clear that potholes are the outcome of inefficient maintenance caused by reduced maintenance funding. This observation is confirmed, also in 2023, by the 16% increase in maintenance backlog to £16.3bn. MAG welcomes the £8.3bn diverted to roads from HS2 but notes that, without ongoing ring fencing of maintenance funding, Government will continue to fail to meet the needs of its vulnerable road users.” The Government’s £8.3 billion comes with strings. The announcement of the funding said that local authorities must publish information on their websites on a regular basis. This should explain how they are spending the funding in their area. MAG will watch to see if this transparency commitment is met. More importantly, MAG is asking riders to flag up if they have actually experienced any improvement. MAG will ask councils for any secrets they have for delivering a bigger maintenance bang for their limited buck and continue to celebrate best practice wherever it can find it. MAG’s Director of Campaigns and Political Engagement, Colin Brown, said: “It is a well-worn path to point out the problem. I cannot imagine that anyone in the country is not fully aware of the issue. With our Treasure Hunt, we hope to find heroes with a ‘can-do’ attitude that deserve to be emulated. Given the shortfall in funding, it may be a bit of a needle in a haystack exercise. It will be interesting to see what, if anything, the riding community can feed back to us.” Contact MAG at 01926 844 064 or [email protected] The 2024 ALARM report can be found on the Asphalt Industry Alliance website here: https://www.asphaltuk.org/alarm-survey-page/ MAG’s Resurface Our Roads campaign page can be found here: https://mag-uk.org/resurface-our-roads The Government’s £8.3 billion funding announcement can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/8-billion-boost-to-repair-roads-and-back-drivers Central Office The Motorcycle Action Group
News from the Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) MAG makes free 15 minutes’ kerbside waiting demand for motorcycles. The Motorcycle Action Group is making a bold but completely practical demand for motorcyclists’ to be allowed waiting time regardless of urban parking restrictions. The demand will be part of the upcoming General Election campaign due to be launched by MAG after the Mayoral and PCC elections. MAG’s demand reads - ‘MAG calls for the Government and local authorities to allow motorcycles 15 minutes’ waiting time parked parallel to the kerb so as not to obstruct traffic, on all non-motorway roads, unless specifically prohibited by notice, regardless of other restrictions, e.g. double yellow lines. Such an allowance would benefit motorcycle users such as couriers, whose work supports the business world, as well as encouraging motorcycle usage generally, thereby reducing congestion and pollution.’ MAG National Chairman Neil F Liversidge said: ‘There is a strong case to allow a short waiting time for bikers where parking is otherwise restricted. Without delivery riders there would be tens of thousands of extra journeys in the urban environment due to people fetching their own parcels and takeaway food. It’s a hard life being a courier and they deserve a fairer deal, instead of being targeted for easy money with expensive traffic tickets.’ Neil specifically cited this video by YouTuber ‘London Hustle’ as exemplifying how hard couriers work, how vital they now are to the urban economy, and how unfairly they are often targeted: Contact MAG at 01926 844 064 or [email protected]
Why should bikers vote for you? Thursday May 2nd is an important date in this year’s calendar. There are Police and Crime Commissioner elections all around the country, regional mayoral elections too. London has their London Assembly election and to cap it all off, a by-election for Blackpool South. The media on these events will increase and we in MAG now have the opportunity to raise the profile of motorcycling with all of the political parties before a General Election is called. The task is to find all these political candidates in their campaign phase and ask them one question “Why should bikers vote for you?” Once you have got their response, write a post about it on your local MAG Facebook page. For those who would like to take it a step further, we have a competition for you. Record your question and their answer on your mobile phone and post the video on your local MAG Facebook page. Tag Motorcycle Action Group on the post and the MAG political team will select a winner based on the quality of the video and interview technique. Don’t worry if your candidate’s response is bad, or you have a small following on your Facebook page – we are judging the quality of the lobbying not the popularity of the result! The winners will receive a MAG 50th hoodie, sweatshirt, or t-shirt for first prize, and a MAG 50th cup or water bottle for second and third prize. Below is a quick video that I put together with members from West Cumbria MAG. #bikersarevoters Let’s not be the forgotten mode of transport anymore. Michael Armstrong MAG National Political Officer. Central Office The Motorcycle Action Group Limited Tel: 01926 844064 Fax: 01926 844065 www.mag-uk.org
News from the Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) Big drop in motorcycle theft on the horizon? The Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) can see potential for a big drop in motorcycle theft in the coming four years. MAG has secured a cohort of Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) candidates willing to make the Fight Motorcycle Theft Pledge. So far, MAG’s Fight Motorcycle Theft Pledge campaign has reached the election discussion for 33 police force areas. Bikers are voters, and at the polls they can exert genuine influence. Thanks to the campaign they will be able to find 49 candidates across England and Wales who have shown a will to tackle the issue. One PCC candidate, in an email to a member stated, “I'm impressed by the way MAG has organised bikers.” MAG collated a list of all candidates by force area. Gold, silver, and bronze ratings have been applied to all candidates who are talking about motorcycle theft, and how they propose to tackle the issue. Those who have not engaged at all have no rating. You can find the full list here: https://wiki.mag-uk.org/images/7/7b/2024_PCC_Candidates.pdf MAG’s Director of Campaigns & Political Engagement, Colin Brown, said: “We have used this campaign to put motorcycle theft into the mix for these PCC elections. The public only get to decide who should be a PCC once every four years. We have grasped this opportunity and have created a good degree of success. For example, riders in the Thames Valley are guaranteed to have a PCC committed to the pledge. We got all the candidates there are on board. There is still time for more candidates to get involved. MAG activists are pushing to increase the level of support in all areas.” MAG does not instruct riders which way to vote. We are making riders aware of where candidates stand on this issue. Riders can then make their own decisions. Once the election results are announced, MAG will report the support for tackling motorcycle theft amongst the elected PCCs. The Fight Motorcycle Theft campaign will continue to push for significant reductions in motorcycle theft. We will get better results if supportive candidates are elected. So we urge all riders in England and Wales to use their vote wisely on 2nd May. Contact MAG at 01926 844 064 or [email protected] Central Office The Motorcycle Action Group Limited Tel: 01926 844064 Fax: 01926 844065
