The ‘Action Plan’ for zero emission Powered Light Vehicles (PLV) is just half the story that misses too many opportunities.
The document is billed as the ‘Action Plan’ for Government and industry to help realise its full potential in decarbonising the UK’s transport sector. The plan makes ten recommendations but in the document’s foreword Minister Trudy Harrison states that she ‘can’t endorse and commit to everything in this plan’.
MAG’s Director of Campaigns and Political Engagement, Colin Brown said:
“The Government committed in its Transport Decarbonisation Plan to work with key partners on an action plan for the sector. For me a fundamental mistake has been to exclude the most key partner in this equation – the users of these vehicles. Riders often make the claim ‘if I had to explain, you wouldn’t understand’. It is clear that this plan doesn’t fully understand motorcycling from a rider’s perspective. Sadly we are going to have to make a real effort to explain. I hope the Government is prepared to make the effort to understand.”
Colin went on to say:
“MAG often uses the strapline ‘the heart and soul of biking’. We are not prepared to stand by and allow the Government to remove the heart and soul of biking. We believe the current policy proposal to end the sale of new petrol motorcycles by an arbitrary date will do just that. For our members motorcycling’s heart and soul cannot be fully perceived through the restricted ‘mode of transport’ lens used by policy makers. The proposed policy route is set to destroy innovation, variety, passion and choice in motorcycling by focusing on a single technology route to banality. Motorcycling as we know and love it will be destroyed. We cannot accept that future.”
MAG are calling for the action plan to be reconsidered with the input of the riders’ voice. MAG Chair Neil Liversidge commented:
“I was re-elected as Chair of MAG with a clear mandate to oppose the ban of ICE vehicles. MAG is dedicated entirely to opposing those proposals. We are not opposed to decarbonisation but the Government must allow the rider to decide how that is achieved.”
