The Motor Cycle Industry Association (MCI) is urging people to lobby their local MP to prevent further anti-motorcycling legislation being added to the statute books.
The industry's easy to use online campaigns feature is in the press section on www.mcia.co.uk and allows people to lobby their local MP by completing a brief, simple form and clicking a button to send an email.
A new Off-Road Vehicles (registrations) Private Members Bill, has been proposed as a solution to the mini-bike problem and is recommending a compulsory, retrospective, registration scheme of all off road motor vehicles as a method of dealing with the misuse of cheap, imported mini-bikes.
However, in 2006 however, there was a significant reduction in interest and the number of Chinese imports fell by 59%. The MCI believes that this 'crash' in the market can be attributed to a number of factors and is likely to continue:
- Police 'crack-downs' and the use of existing powers to seize and crush
- Publicity surrounding the illegal use
- Parental awareness
- Mini Bikes going out of fashion
- Home Office campaign Summer 2006
- Action by Auto Cycle Union to get more local provision for legal use
- Localised action - police, residents, Local Authority
The Motor Cycle Industry is advising that there are already twelve laws in place that can be used to deal with the issue of misuse of mini bikes and an extra law, which would not come into place for many months would have a limited effect on the illegal users who already would have little regard for the current law.
To join the campaign go online and lobby your MP with a simple click of a button. www.mcia.co.uk/S%5FPress/SContent.asp?sc=D1BD
Craig Carey Clinch said, "The proposed legislation for a compulsory, retrospective registration scheme is going to have many negative implications for people who are already using off-road vehicles legitimately and the ongoing law-breakers will be unlikely to conform as they are already breaking a range of laws, some of them quite serious such as riding without insurance.
"The scheme will be costly to implement and legitimate sport will become even more expensive and bureaucratic. The number plates, could be dangerous, as they would be likely to break and could be hazardous when racing or competing. The bureaucracy would involve the DVLA in the arduous and time-consuming task of tracking down bikes and the cost of the scheme could spiral.
"Resources would be better targeted if they were contributed to enable further police action using existing laws, developing provision and educating the public."
