Crime and Policing Act 2026 — Will write letters: Letter from Lord Katz to Lord Shinkwin and others regarding the research the Department for Transport will be taking forward on food delivery riders using e-bikes.
Parliament bill publication: Will write letters. Unassigned.
GOVERNMENTWHIPS’OFFICE
MENTWHIPCO,DEFRA,DWP,FCDO,HO,HOUSEOFLORDS
JANDWOLONDONSWIAOPW
02072196802
Telephone020
wwwlordswhips.org
holgovernmentwhips@parliamentatk
17thMarch2026
i\eorKev
AttheReportstageoftheCrimeandPolicingBillon4thMarch,Ipromisedtowrite
toyouabouttheresearchthattheDepartmentforTransportwillbetakingforwardon
fooddeliveryridersusinge-bikes(Hansard,column1289).
Asyourightlyhighlighted,bothatCommitteeandReportstages,poorroad
behavioursbydeliveryriderscanhavearealimpactonthesafetyofallroadusers,
andespeciallythemostvulnerable.
ThisGovernmentisabsolutelycommittedtothesafetyofallroadusers,andour
RoadSafetyStrategy,publishedon7thJanuary,setoutourplantosignificantly
reducedeathsandseriousinjuriesonBritain’sroadsby65%(70%forchildrenunder
16)by2035.ThistargetwillfocustheeffortsofroadsafetypartnersacrossBritain,
withmeasurestoprotectvulnerableroadusers,updatevehiclesafetytechnologies
andreviewmotoringoffences.Allofthiswillbesupportedandmonitoredbyanew
RoadSafetyBoardchairedbytheMinisterforLocalTransport.
Specificallyinthecaseofdeliveryriders,thisStrategydetailsapilot“National
Work-RelatedRoadSafetyCharter”whichwillincludee-bikesandothertypesof
vehiclesusedbypeoplewhodriveorrideforwork.Thepilotwillrunfortwoyears
andwillbemonitoredandfullyevaluated.
AlongsidetheCharter,andasIexplainedintheHouse,weneedtoensurewehave
hard,documenteddataontheextentofanyissuesconcerningtheroadbehavioursof
deliveryriders,aswellastheanecdotalevidencesharedbycolleagues.Whilethereis
someexistingresearchinrelationtodeliveryridersusingmopedsandmotorbikes',as
Iamsureyouwillappreciatethisdoesnotcapturetherangeofissueslikelytobe
1
www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2022/nov/road-collisions-more-likely-takeaway
economy
applicabletothoseusinge-bikes.Moreover,thisearlierresearchwaspublishedin
2022,andthegigeconomyisofcourseevolvingrapidly.ThisiswhyDfTisinthe
processofcommissioningnewresearchandspecificallyinrespectofdeliveryriders
usinge-bikes.
IknowthatLordHendyhasalreadywrittentoyoufollowingourmeetingon
10thFebruary,pointingtoboththeCharterandtheplannedresearchondelivery
riders.Ihave,however,soughttoprovidesomefurtherdetailandassuranceonwhat
theresearchwillcover.
Insummary,theresearchwillcreatethefirstrobust,evidence-basedunderstandingof
e-bikeuseamongfooddeliveryridersintheUK,focusingonthreecoreareas:
eTheprevalenceofillegalornon-compliante-bikes,
eRiderroadbehaviouranditsimpactonpublicsafety,and
eTheinfluenceofgig-economybusinessmodelsonthesebehaviours.
Existingdatadoesnotdistinguishe-bikesfromothercycles,nordeliveryridersfrom
thewidercyclingpopulation,leavingasignificantgapintheevidencerequiredfor
proportionateandeffectivepolicymaking.
Theresearchwillusearangeofinnovativeandmixed-methodapproaches,which
mayincludetelematics,behaviouralinsights,observationalanalysisandstakeholder
engagementtoaddresstheseevidencegapsandunderstanddifferencesacrosslocal
areas.Itwillalsoidentifyanyemergingbestpracticeamongenforcementbodies,
deliveryplatformsorcommunities.
Theoutcomeswillprovideaclear,independentassessmentofrisks,compliance
levelsandcontributingfactors,andwillsupportfuturepolicydecisionsrelatingto
roadsafety,activetravel,andmicromobilityregulation.Ultimately,thisresearch
projectaimstoimprovesafetyforallroaduserswhileenablingthepositivebenefits
oflegale-bikeusetoberealised.
Disabledpeople’sorganisationswillabsolutelybeamongthekeystakeholdergroups
consultedfollowingtheresearchbeingformallycommissioned.WhileIcannot,at
thisstage,provideadefinitivelistofthoseorganisationsthatwillbeapproached,I
wouldexpectthistoinclude,attheveryleast,TransportforAll,DisabilityRightsUK
andtheDisabledPersonsTransportAdvisoryCommittee.
Iamgratefultoyouforraisingthisimportantmatter.DfTwillofcoursepublishthe
findingsfromtheresearch,whichweexpecttoconcludebyMarchnextyear.
IamcopyingthislettertoLordHendyofRichmondHillandLilianGreenwoodMP
astheministersresponsibleattheDepartmentforTransport.Iamalsocopyingthis
lettertoallpeerswhospokeinthedebate(LordLucas,LordHogan-Howe,Baroness
McIntoshofPickering,LordBlencathra,BaronessNeville-Rolfe,ViscountGoschen,
LordRussellofLiverpool,BaronessPidgeonandLordDaviesofGower)andplacing
acopyinthelibraryoftheHouse.
Bestwishes,
[NA
THELORDKATZMBE
LordinWaiting(GovernmentWhip)
TheLordShinkwin
HouseofLords