Rushcliffe Borough Council (RBC) has called on the Home Secretary and the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government to request that the Government instigate new legislation surrounding car cruising meetings and gatherings.
The Council passed a motion to lobby the central government officials at its Full Council meeting on Thursday (December 5), asking for a legal requirement for organisers to pre-notify the relevant authorities when they are set to meet.
RBC will now write to Yvette Cooper MP and Angela Rayner MP to request that further measures are put in place to protect the public safety of residents affected by the meetings, ensuring they are pre-notified and approved with the authority of the Police and stakeholder partnerships.
If new rules were implemented, where a car cruising meeting is planned, a failure to provide the notification could result in any attendee being liable to prosecution or dispersal from a car meet site.
It is also requested that, in order to tackle this issue effectively, partner organisations, including Nottinghamshire Police, are given the appropriate tools to address any breaches and can apply a simple means of deterrence, dispersal, and prosecution.
RBC’s Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Environment & Safety, Cllr Rob Inglis, said: “The Borough, along with other parts of the County, is often affected by what are commonly known as car meets or cruisers.
“These gatherings are a cause of significant concern to many residents and constitute Anti-Social Behaviour, making them a risk to public safety.
“The current road traffic laws cover some aspects of this issue but are not sufficient to prevent the problems. Therefore, we need the support of central government to give the Police, ourselves, and partners the right tools to tackle the problem.”
• Police operation tackles nuisance car meets and street racing in Rushcliffe
• Police statement after huge car cruising event in Ratcliffe
