MCIA celebrates “hugely significant moment” for motorcycle legislation
The Government has committed to reviewing motorcycle training and licensing, though industry bodies warn reforms must simplify access and improve safety rather than restrict it.
The Motorcycle Industry Association (MCIA) has welcomed confirmation that the Government will carry out an official review of motorcycle training, testing and licensing, following the publication of the UK’s first Road Safety Strategy in more than a decade.
As reported earlier this week, the strategy commits the Department for Transport to consulting on reforms to the current motorcycle licensing framework, recognising both the disproportionate risk faced by riders and the potential role motorcycles could play in tackling congestion and supporting net zero ambitions.
Motorcyclists currently account for around one per cent of road traffic but more than 20 per cent of road fatalities, a disparity highlighted in the strategy, which aims to cut deaths and serious injuries on Britain’s roads by 65 per cent by 2035.
MCIA says the announcement reflects several years of lobbying through its A Licence to Net Zero campaign, which has argued that the UK’s motorcycle licensing system is overly complex, expensive and poorly aligned with modern transport policy.
Licensing reform also forms part of the association’s wider Action Plan for the L-Category sector, developed with the previous government. The plan identifies changes to training and access as one of several measures needed to improve safety and encourage modal shift, alongside infrastructure investment, regulatory reform and support for low- and zero-emission vehicles.
While welcoming the review, MCIA has warned against reforms that make access more restrictive. The association argues that any changes should simplify licence progression, improve training quality and reduce unnecessary barriers for new and returning riders, rather than limiting access in the name of safety.
The review will now feed into a wider consultation process led by the Department for Transport, with MCIA indicating it will work alongside ministers, training providers and rider organisations as proposals are developed.
Commenting on the announcement, MCIA chief executive Tony Campbell said:
“This is a hugely significant moment for the motorcycle sector and a massive campaign win for MCIA. For several years, through our A Licence to Net Zero campaign, we have been calling for a full review of motorcycle licensing, training and testing - and today the Government has formally committed to doing exactly that.
“The Minister’s announcement at our Annual Conference last year was a critical turning point, and since then we have worked relentlessly to ensure this issue stayed firmly on the agenda. This review would not be happening without that sustained engagement.
“There is still a lot of work to do, and the detail will matter enormously. We will work constructively alongside government to ensure any reforms make licensing less complex, more affordable and, above all, safer – not more restrictive.
“This is a monumental opportunity to support motorcycling as a safe, sustainable and practical transport mode that can help deliver the Government’s ambitions on road safety, net zero and growth. We must not waste it.”
The Department for Transport has not yet confirmed a timetable for the consultation, but the commitment places motorcycle licensing firmly back on the policy agenda for the first time in over a decade.”
You can get a riding school's take on the new motorcycle training and CBT proposals here.
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Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!