Illegal use of e-bikes becoming a scourge
The good news from my regular catch-up with police in South West Edinburgh this week was that around ten illegal souped-up e-bikes have been seized in the past fortnight.
The bad news is it’s a drop in the ocean, when both the illegal use of e-bikes and the criminal use of legal motocross and quad bikes is becoming a scourge.
A friend witnessed five black-clad youths without helmets on off-road bikes doing wheelies through Bruntsfield last week, riding abreast across the width of the road and probably on their way to terrorise people enjoying the sun on the Meadows, where the chances of being caught are next to zero.
Anti-social behaviour and gang-related violence are becoming unacceptably frequent in Edinburgh. From youths abusing their free passes with threatening behaviour on buses, disorder around Bonfire Night, extreme aggression on Portobello Beach, to off-road bikes tearing up parkland – not to mention the shootings and fire-bombing associated with drug feuds – police are being stretched as never before.
To think that not long ago, an idiot Green councillor was sharing “defund the police” messages on social media when the police – with 800 fewer officers than when Police Scotland was formed in 2013 – need more resources than ever. At least the South West force is now back to its full quota of vehicles, but they still need a quad bike to tackle anti-social behaviour around the reservoirs. We don’t want to live in a police state, but the mindless minority must be held to account for their actions.
Sue Webber is a Scottish Conservative MSP for Lothian