Cycling England board member hits back at cuts rumour

Christian Wolmar has reacted angrily to the possibility of cuts to the organisation, reports Road.cc.

With the Government looking to make substantial savings by cuting funding for public bodies, including slashing £683 million from the budget of the Department of Transport, Cycling England is rumoured to have an uncertain future.

In an open letter, Cycling England board member Wolmar slammed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport Norman Baker and urged him to leave the organisation unchanged.

“Don’t start blustering that cycling will be safe without Cycling England or a properly-funded successor body. It won’t. The new fund is not due to start till 2012 anyway, and Cycling England’s money runs out in 2011.”

“What have you done so far Norman? By all accounts sat on your hands, and hidden behind your civil servants making no comment on the future of cycle funding… ask yourself this. What is Norman Baker for? Or more precisely, what is the point of you being in the Department for Transport?”

“If you are not going to attempt to save the work that Cycling England has being doing, and are going to hide behind this vague general fund which is clearly going to result in far less encouragement for cycling, you really have to ask yourself why you are bothering.”

“No doubt the trappings of office are great fun, but unless you are prepared to stand up for what you believe in, chuck it in Norman. Or battle away hard for it behind the scenes and prepare to stand up and be counted. Show us, in essence, that you are not simply a collaborator.”