The government could soon make privately-owned e-scooters legal on roads in England.
With the popularity of electric scooters continuing to rise across the country, and the latest data from Which? and Halfords indicating there has been a 184% increase in sales for e-mobility products year on year in November 2020, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has now told the Commons Transport Select Committee during a meeting this week that legislation to make e-scooters legal on roads will be included in the Queen’s Speech on 10 May.
“In the future, I want to crack down on the illegal use on roads of non-compliant e-scooters,” Mr Shapps told the committee.
The current law states that e-scooters can only be used on roads in England if they are part of a trial rental scheme – of which there currently is, and has been, a number of in Greater Manchester over the past couple of years – and they have to have safety features including automatic lights and maximum speeds of 15.5mph.
E-scooters are actually classed as motor vehicles, which means that the same rules that apply to motor vehicles, also apply to e-scooters – including being in possession of a full UK driving license, insurance, and the need to be taxed.
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Read more: E-scooter sales are soaring – but what are the current laws in Greater Manchester?
Privately-owned e-scooters can only legally be used on private land with the permission of the landowner, and they cannot be ridden on a UK public road, cycle lane, or pavement.
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However, they are frequently seen in cities and towns across the country.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps told the Transport Select Committee he is looking at making e-scooters legal on roads in England / Credit: Number 10 (via Flickr)
This illegal usage is why the government and transport ministers are reportedly said to be considering ways to legalise them, with Mr Shapps telling the Transport Select Committee this week that: “We will take powers to properly regulate and then be able to decide the usage of them.
“They’re a reality, they exist. If these things exist they need to be made safe, and I think the trials have been useful in gathering data and there’s more data still to gather.”
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The potential legislation to make private e-scooters road legal has been met with mixed reviews by members of the government’s Transport Select Committee, with some praising the move for the positive impact it could have on the environment, while others have raised concerns over the safety of the scooters and their growing involvement in collisions.
Committee member Ben Bradshaw said e-scooters are a “convenient, cheap and environmentally-friendly form of transport”, and asked Mr Shapps when the DfT will “get a move on and properly license these things?”
Mr Shapps answered: “I shall announce it on 10 May.”
E-scooters can currently only be used on roads in England if they are part of a trial rental scheme / Credit: JavyGo & Martin Katler (via Unsplash)
Another committee member, Conservative MP Simon Jupp, on the contrary however raised concerns over e-scooters’ safety, and pointed to the fact that they have lead to “900 collisions, 11 of which were fatal”.
AA president Edmund King also aid after the meeting: “The government is right to address this issue and bring in regulations, rather than allowing some of our cities to be over-run like the Wild West with illegal scooters [as] micro-mobility and e-technology can have a positive effect on movement in our cities.
“But we must ensure that movement is safe.”
Featured Image – Pixabay
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Victim named and murder investigation launched after young woman is killed in Newton Heath stabbing
Emily Sergeant
The victim of a street stabbing in Newton Heath this week has been named for the first time as a murder investigation continues.
It comes after officers from Greater Manchester Police (GMP) responded to reports of a disturbance at around 2am yesterday (Thursday 15 October) on Dorking Avenue, in the Newton Heath area of Manchester, and when they arrived on the scene, they found a woman in her 20s with serious injuries that were ‘consistent with a stabbing’.
Despite best efforts of all emergency services involved, the young woman was sadly pronounced dead at the scene.
As the murder investigation progresses, the woman has now been publicly named and a photo of her has been released for the first time.
She has been named as 26-year-old Alisha Samuels.
At this time, one man, aged 25, has been arrested on suspicion of murder, and a man and woman, aged 61 and 38, have been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender, and they all remain in custody – with officers continuing their enquiries to establish the full circumstances of this incident.
Alisha’s family have asked for privacy whilst they deal with the devastating loss of their loved one, GMP has stated.
“We are continuing to urge people who may have information in relation to this incident to please come forward to support our investigation and bring justice for Alisha,” the police force said in a public appeal.
Anyone who may have witnessed the incident, or has mobile phone, CCTV, or doorbell footage, is urged to call GMP on 0161 856 5464, or contact them via the Major Incident Public Portal here.
Alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111
Featured Image – GMP (Family Handout)
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Former supply teacher jailed for multiple upskirting and AI sex offences across Greater Manchester
Emily Sergeant
A former supply teacher has been jailed for multiple upskirting and AI sex offences in schools across Greater Manchester.
Abusali Rahman – a British national of Bangladeshi ethnicity from Salford – appeared in Bolton Crown Court this week for his sentencing after first being charged with, and then pleading guilty to, several offences.
The offences are including, but not limited to, 12 counts of taking an indecent photograph/pseudo-photograph of a child (images obtained by upskirting), three counts of making indecent photograph / pseudo-photograph of a child (making AI-generated images), and one count of attempting to meet girl under 16 following sexual grooming.
The offences are alleged to have taken place between December 2023 and June 2025, according to Greater Manchester Police (GMP).
Twelve girls have been identified in relation to the upskirting offences – aged between 13 and 16 at the time of the alleged offending – at seven high schools in three Greater Manchester boroughs (Bury, Bolton, and Salford).
GMP says it has remained in close contact with the schools, local authorities, and other partners throughout the investigation to ensure all appropriate support is in place for those who need it.
Additionally, the court also heard how Rahman amassed a collection of images of young girls, using AI and other methods to sexualise them.
The images numbered more than 300 in total, ranging from Category A to Category C classifications, and Rahman would post these on social media, often alongside humiliating and disgusting captions.
Rahman was sentenced to six years in prison, and will also be subject to a 20-year Sexual Harm Protection Order.
A former supply teacher has been jailed for child sex offences in schools across Greater Manchester / Credit: GMP
Detective Constable Lisa McGaffin, from GMP’s Bolton Child Protection Team, described Rahman’s crimes as ‘absolutely abhorrent’.
“My thoughts throughout this process have always been with the young girls who have been subject to such indignity,” DC McGaffin said following the sentencing this week. “Their welfare and support will always be a priority for us.
“While working as a teacher – someone who young children should trust and be safe with – Rahman repeatedly took secret photos for his own sick gratification, before posting images online which showed his total disregard for the girls’ respect and dignity.
Emily Sergeant -
28th April 2022 
