When will your candidates stand up for cycling and walking?

Cycling UK launched its Election 2019 campaign, to give you the chance to ask the candidates aspiring to become your next MP whether they’ll stand up for cycling and walking.

An underfunding of cycling and walking crisis

Active travel is massively underfunded throughout the UK, with spending in England (outside London) amounting to only around 2% of total transport spending. It’s better in Scotland, but nowhere is it enough, which is why we wrote to every candidate across the UK asking them to pledge to support increased investment in cycling and walking to at least 5% of transport spending next year, rising to at least 10% within five years.

In the last two weeks, over 3,500 people have taken action to write to the candidates in their constituency who’ve yet to make the pledge, and as a result 653 candidates have now done so, committing to support the transformational level of investment in cycling and walking that’s desperately needed.

Which party’s candidates are pledging?

You can check which of your candidates have pledged, and email the ones who haven’t, but by political party the number of candidates who’ve pledged so far is (numbers are up to date as per article published date):

• Alliance Party of Northern Ireland = 5
• Brexit Party = 9
• Conservatives = 8
• Green Party (England and Wales) = 246
• Independent = 20
• The Independent Group for Change = 1
• Labour = 148
• Liberal Democrats = 184
• The Liberal Party = 1
• Plaid Cymru = 6
• Scottish Green Party = 7
• Scottish National Party = 3

Where parties aren’t listed above, no candidates have pledged to date.

Is funding for cycling and walking in their manifestos?

Of course, some political parties only stand candidates within either Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, where funding for cycling and walking is a devolved matter. We have however outlined in our letters to those candidates that the underfunding of active travel is an urgent issue throughout the UK, and that if elected as an MP they would be able to table questions, speak in debates and seek to influence decisions regarding investment in active travel, so we’re still asking for their support.

So, with six days to go to the election, what have the main political parties said or committed to in their manifestos on funding for cycling and walking?

This is a factual account of what the parties have said to date without further comment or opinion. We will however update this as and when any further announcements are made, but at least you know where they all stand as of today, and you can check whether your own candidates are standing up for cycling and walking, and email them to ask why not, through our Election 2019 action.

Conservative

A commitment to create a new £350 million Cycling Infrastructure Fund. A separate costing document confirms that this is spread over 5 years, at £70 million per annum.

Labour

A manifesto commitment to increase the funding available for cycling and walking Further details were outlined in a subsequent press release confirming that capital investment in cycling and walking would amount to £4.7 billion over five years, in England, with total annual spending in England on active travel increasing to £50 per head. Currently it is estimated to be just over £7 per head annually. 

Scottish National

No mention of cycling or walking.

Liberal Democrat

A commitment to introduce a nationwide strategy to promote walking and cycling, including the creation of dedicated safe cycling lanes, increasing spending per head five-fold to reach 10 per cent of the transport budget.

Plaid Cymru

A commitment to increase spending on active travel routes and promote walking and cycling, with significant improvements to cycling infrastructure, but no mention of the amount.

Green

A commitment to a Green New Deal for transport spending £2.5 billion a year on new cycleways and footpaths.

Scottish Green

A commitment to a Scottish Green New Deal which would redirect funding away from high-carbon transport infrastructure and to public transport, cycling and walking, but no mention of the amount.

Brexit

Nothing on cycling and walking.

Parties in Northern Ireland

The Ulster Unionist Party have yet to publish their manifestos. We will update this article as and when they do. Neither the Democratic Unionist Party, the Alliance Party, the Social Democratic and Labour Party,or Sinn Féin have mentioned cycling or walking in their manifestos. 

Holding feet to the fire

Whichever party or parties form the next Government, we need champions to stand up for active travel in Parliament.

We need to be able to hold them to account and point to the pledge they made to support increased investment in cycling and walking.

And people like you need to be able to say to your next MP hang on, you said you’d support this, why aren’t you?

If they’ve pledged we can hold them to it, so please give us one minute of your time, and email your candidates now.

You don’t need to worry about pestering them. If they’ve already pledged they won’t receive another email. Only those who haven’t will continue to receive emails, which you can edit if you want to refer to local issues or concerns.

We’ve been fobbed off on funding for cycling and walking for too long, so let your candidates know how important this is to you, and take action today.