I rise with some enthusiasm because, as the House knows, cycling has moved up a gear as a result of this Government. New clause 13 reflects the Government’s commitment to cycling and walking, and making these the natural choice for shorter journeys. The cycling fraternity has responded already. No less a personage than Chris Boardman described this proposal as representing
“a massive shift in thinking and, most importantly, commitment.”
He went on to say:
“It brings us one step closer to realising our vision for a cycling nation . . . Everyone who rides a bike should see this as the start of something really exciting.”
Government have to take difficult decisions, and not everything we do is universally popular, but when one gets such acclamation, one has to—I will not say milk it; that would be wrong—draw it to the attention of the House in a measured and humble way, which is what I intend to do in this short debate about cycling.
This is certainly an exciting move forward. Since 2010, the Government’s spending on cycling overall has more than doubled compared with the last four years of the previous Administration, with £374 million committed between 2011 and 2015. The Minister responsible for cycling—I do not count that among my encyclopaedic list of responsibilities—is the Under-Secretary of State for Transport, my hon. Friend the Member for Scarborough and Whitby (Mr Goodwill). He has been a champion of this and should be recognised for his efforts and dedication in listening to the issues raised by cycling groups and responding to them.
8 pm
Let us look at some of the facts. Spending on cycling is currently about £6 per person each year across England and £10 per person in London and our eight cycling ambition cities. In November, we announced a further £140 million for the cycling ambition cities, and, through the road investment strategy, a further £100 between 2015 and 2021 for additional cycling provision on the strategic road network. As I am sure the House is aware, in October we published our draft cycling delivery plan—a 10-year strategy on how we plan to increase cycling and walking across England. This plan illustrates the Government’s long-term commitment to cycling and walking. It is in that spirit that we tabled the new clause, which places a duty on the Secretary of State to have just such an investment strategy.
Each of the strategies, which cover England only, will be set for a given period and must specify objectives to be achieved and the financial resources that will be made available for that purpose. Furthermore, the Secretary of State will be required to report to Parliament on
progress on achieving those objectives and, where a strategy applies for a period longer than five years, to ensure that it is reviewed at least once every five years.