NEWS RELEASE
I issued the following press release on 19.08.2005
Cycling Provision
Lynne Jones, MP for Birmingham Selly Oak, has called for Birmingham to give a higher priority to cycling. In letters to Birmingham City Council, Lynne queried the progress that Birmingham has made in developing the sport in the City and contrasted it with the promotion of the sport in neighbouring local authorities such as Dudley, Wolverhampton and Lichfield. Lynne also called on the City Council to mainstream facilities on the roads for cyclists when carrying out routine road maintenance and programmed improvements.
Lynne said “One of the aspects of the sport of cycling that greatly impresses me is the inter-generational nature of sporting events, involving children from as young as five or six to veterans in their sixties. No other sport offers such an opportunity, and of course, no other sport offers the potential to develop an environmentally-friendly and health-giving form of transport. I am very pleased that there is to be a Tour of Britain Criterium event in Birmingham on 3 September, and I hope that this event will be used as an opportunity for promoting cycling amongst young people. “
E N D S
Note to Editors: Please also see letter to Brian Stocks, Birmingham City Council Head of Sport, below, which has also been copied to relevant Cabinet members.
Brian Stocks,
Head of Sport and International Events,
Department of Leisure and Culture
PO Box 2122
Alpha Tower
Suffolk Street Queensway
Birmingham B1 1TZ
10th August 2005
Our Ref. BL2570/001
Dear Mr Stocks,
Policy for Sport in Birmingham
As you will see from the enclosed letter of 15th June 1998, I have previously expressed my disappointment at the low priority being given by the city to cycling as a sport (and also, as a healthy/non-polluting means of transport).
Mr Ellis’ letter mentions the weakness of the Governing Body and club structure in facilitating the development of the sport and expresses the view that the city would be keen to see the sport develop both locally and nationally.
The purpose of this letter, therefore, is to ask what, if any progress has been made in developing the sport of cycling in Birmingham. From my own experience, there are strong developments within neighbouring authority areas (Dudley, Wolverhampton and Lichfield, for example), and I attend many local cycling events throughout the year in these areas in which many young people participate. It is disappointing that no such events take place in Birmingham, since the demise of Salford Park. Even Wheels Park seems to be rarely used.
One of the aspects of the sport of cycling that greatly impresses me is the inter-generational nature of sporting events, involving children from as young as five or six to veterans in their sixties. No other sport offers such an opportunity, and of course, no other sport offers the potential to develop an environmentally-friendly and health-giving form of transport.
I look forward to hearing of any plans you may have for promoting cycling in Birmingham.
I am very pleased that there is to be a Tour of Britain Criterium event in Birmingham on the 3rd of September, and I hope that this event will be used as an opportunity for promoting cycling amongst young people. I am copying this letter to Councillor John Alden and Councillor Len Gregory, the Cabinet Members for, respectively, Leisure, Sport & Culture and Transportation & Street Services. I note, from a recent edition of Forward, that Councillor Gregory approved over one million pounds of funding to “encourage the City’s cyclists and pedestrians to get out on the City’s pathways and improve their health”, and I would be interested to receive further details of these schemes and how they are being promoted.
Yours sincerely,
LYNNE JONES MP
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