Sir, – Thankfully, Robin Mather (April 11th) has injected some common sense into the debate about cyclists’ behaviour. The proposal (Zara Brady, April 10th) to compel cyclists to register and have number plates does not surprise me any more.
It seems as if, any time an individual is annoyed or inconvenienced, the default position is to appeal to the Government to introduce controlling legislation, with its attendant fines and threat of imprisonment. I see this attitude creeping in everywhere. People who don’t have dogs demand more regulation for dogs and their owners, motorists who don’t cycle demand more regulation for cyclists, walkers who don’t ride want more restrictions on horses and mountain bikers; the list goes on.
Those who want more regulation in such activities tend to use health, safety or environmental arguments to support their case, but in reality they are often motivated by a lack of tolerance and because they themselves are not affected. Do we really want to live in a country where every such activity is suffocatingly regulated? Are we culturally unable to resolve such issues without constant appeals for more and more State control? – Yours, etc,
DAVID HICKIE,
Claremont Road, Sandymount, Dublin 4.