Naushabah Khan

I agree that we need to look at the sale of these bikes much more closely. Conversion kits that can turn an ordinary peddle bike into something more powerful can be ordered online for less than £300. Complete machines are sold on the basis that they are for use on private land, when everyone knows where they actually end up. Young people are able to buy them with little standing in their way. I welcome the steps that the Government have already taken to strengthen legislation in this area; however, I ask the Minister to consider two things. The former Department for Business and Trade committed to responding to its product safety consultation within 12 weeks of it closing in June. That deadline has now passed by some two months. Will the Minister press colleagues to publish the response without further delay and make the case from the Home Office that restricting the sale of conversion kits would ease the burden on our police? The second thing is enforcement. At the moment, there is no consistent national approach, and results vary a great deal from one force to the next. Where an approach has worked, it has been well planned and properly resourced. In London, the Met has targeted hotspots using intelligence, tested bikes at the roadside with rolling roads and put officers on e-bikes of their own. It has seized more than 2,500 illegal bikes this year, and phone theft in the west end has nearly halved. I would be grateful if the Minister could say whether the Government will look at a national framework for enforcement, based on best practice evidence, and push for it to be properly funded, so that my Gillingham and Rainham constituents can see the same results on their high streets.