Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a cycle scheme whereby people of pension age can obtain commuter bikes and cycling accessories at a discounted rate; and whether he has had discussions with Ministerial colleagues in the Department for Work and Pensions on such a scheme.

The Department has not made any detailed assessment of the potential merits of introducing such a scheme. The Cycle to Work scheme enables employees of any age to hire a cycle and safety equipment from their employer through a salary sacrifice arrangement, effectively providing access to cycles at a discount. For those who are not in employment, no similar scheme is in place, but the Department is supporting pilot schemes in a number of local authority areas to test approaches to providing e-cycles to those with the highest need, including those that cannot benefit from the cycle to work scheme. The Department is also due to launch a national e-cycle support programme shortly, building on the lessons learned from these pilot schemes. It is also developing a social prescribing pilot scheme to be rolled out in some local authority areas which could involve providing subsidised access to cycles for older people.