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Chairman of Virgin Group Sir Richard Branson has been stopped for cycling without a helmet in Australia, The Daily Telegraph reports.
Australia is one of the few countries that forces cyclists by law to wear a helmet. According to the report, Branson was let off with a caution – as is common practice with overseas visitors unfamiliar with the rules – and the entrepreneur donned a helmet he presumably had handy after being approached by Adelaide police.
Fellow Brit Robert Pattinson also received similar treatment last month. The Twilight star and pin-up was also cautioned in the South Australia region by officials, himself donning a baseball cap while riding – Branson had been riding with only his ample haircut for protection.
Compulsory wearing of helmets by cyclists is a magnet for controversy. Last year the debate even sucked in Bradley Wiggins – he later clarified he had not called for compulsory helmets for cyclists. Later in 2012 in Parliament there was discussion of making lids law for riders in the UK.
More recently, Sheriff James Scott directly and controversially cited the lack of a bike helmet as a contributory factor in a cyclist’s death, stoking fears of making helmets compulsory ‘by the back door’.
Pic from Virgin.com
