Helmets should be compulsory for cyclists, says Tour de France champion Geraint Thomas

Government currently carrying out cycling safety review designed to reflect public concern over safety on roads

Cycling UK – the UK’s national cycling charity – is opposed to helmet laws and campaigns to promote their use (AFP/GettyBen Stansall)

Tour de France champion Geraint Thomas has said cyclists should be forced to wear helmets.

The cycling professional, from Cardiff, Wales, said there was “no reason” not to wear a helmet when biking through the streets of London.

He told the Sunday Times Magazine: “I’ve never ridden a bike in London, apart from in a race.

“I’ve watched from a taxi and it does seem a bit crazy. I would certainly make helmets compulsory.

“I always wear a helmet, I’ve put on a helmet more times than I’ve buckled a seatbelt.

“Helmets have come on a lot – well ventilated, not too hot, you don’t look stupid – no reason not to.”

The government is currently carrying out a cycling safety review designed to reflect public concern over safety on the roads.

Cycling UK – the UK’s national cycling charity – is opposed to helmet laws and campaigns to promote their use because they are “almost certainly detrimental to public health”.

The charity said: “Evidence shows that the health benefits of cycling are so much greater than the relatively low risks involved, that even if these measures caused only a very small reduction in cycle use, this would still almost certainly mean far more lives being lost through physical inactivity than helmets could possibly save, however effective.”

The policing resources required to enforce a ban would be “grossly disproportionate to any possible benefits”, it added.

Press Association