Off-road bikes continue to be a blight on our communities.
Last week I brought together neighbouring MP Sharon Hodgson, the Police and Crime Commissioner, Durham Constabulary, Northumbria Police, local Fire & Rescue Service, Beamish Museum, Walk Wheel Cycle Trust, Durham County Council, British Horse Society, Urpeth Parish Council and residents for an unprecedented meeting to talk about the extent of the problem and what can be done about it.
The damage caused by local off-road bikes is clear – residents are worried about confronting them.
One of the key messages to come out of the meeting was that the police get reports of sightings, but very rarely receive reports of where these bikes are being stored.
If you see someone storing a bike you think may be used antisocially, you can report it anonymously at https://www.durham.police.uk/…/report-antisocial…/
There was a list of follow up actions that we are now working on such as bringing questions to Parliament, discussing the issue with local housing providers, campaigns on reporting to police and I will continue to update on this.
We all agreed on the fundamental fact that off-road bikes used antisocially is a national issue and we in North Durham are aiming to tackle it!
