Well done the Dragonflies class from Wetherington Community Primary School in Launceston!

The pupils were so concerned about speeding cars outside their school that they wrote letters to their local MP, Scott Mann.

As a direct result of this, he presented a private members bill to parliament this afternoon.

The bill is intended to give town and parish councils the ability to hold a referendum on whether speed limits on roads in their area should be altered.

The bill passed its first reading this afternoon and the second reading will be held on Friday 5 February.

Whilst Scott Mann is very much to be congratulated on introducing this bill, I don’t believe it goes far enough.

I really think that, subject to certain conditions, parish and town councils should have the ability to impose speed limits on their local roads without having to hold a referendum . I also believe that they should have the same strong powers to regulate on-street parking (i.e. yellow lines).

I hope that our local MP, Peter Heaton-Jones, will wholeheartedly support this bill –  the Speed Limits on Roads (Devolved Powers) Bill – and will be contacting him to persuade him to do so.  I shall also ask South Molton Town Council to do the same.

For those of a pedantic disposition the bill was a Ten Minute Rule Motion and its full title is:

“A Bill to amend Part VI of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, and the Local Authorities’ Traffic Orders (Procedure) (England and Wales) Regulations 1996, to make provision about the powers and duties of parish and town councils in relation to applying for speed limit orders; to provide for the conduct of local referendums to determine whether such applications should be made; and for connected purposes.”

I haven’t (yet) been able to find a full copy of the bill but when I do I’ll have a closer look at it.