King’s Speech summary and E-scooter trials extended
Published 27 November 2023
Thomas Pocklington Trust logo.
21 Bills and draft Bills were announced by the Government on 7 November 2023 who set out its legislative priorities for the next parliamentary session in the King’s Speech, but crucially this did not include proposals for legislation on micromobility, including e-scooters.
In the Queen’s Speech in 2022, the Government announced a Transport Bill would be introduced that would include regulations on micromobility. This was later dropped.
The Government has confirmed that there will be no legislation in this new parliament session either, though they say they will continue to gather evidence to ensure safety, user accountability and market growth are considered in any future laws.
They have also announced that existing e-scooter rental trials will be extended for a further two years, to 31 May 2026 – the fourth time that trials have been extended since they were first launched in 2020-21.
Thomas Pocklington Trust have issued a statement on their website: King’s Speech: Shocking failure to act on e-scooters – Thomas Pocklington Trust.
Mike Bell, Head of Public Affairs and Campaigns at Thomas Pocklington Trust“Blind and partially sighted people have been calling for urgent action to better regulate and control e-scooters ever since they began to appear on the streets of the UK. Alongside rental trials, that have been repeatedly extended, there are an estimated one million unlicensed and unregulated privately owned e-scooters being used across the country.
“Far too many e-scooters are silent, heavy, fast moving and used in places where they come into conflict with pedestrians. For people living with a visual impairment this is an unacceptable risk to life and limb. We have been calling for legislation to enforce design standards, regulate speeds, promote good user training, deliver sensible parking and – critically – make sure that e-scooters have an acoustic vehicle alert system.
“The Government is guilty of a shocking failure to act on e-scooters despite all the promises and all the evidence that legislation is long overdue.”
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