E-scooter protest held outside Downing Street

Campaigners calling for electric scooters to be allowed on UK roads have staged a protest outside Downing Street.

Protesters brought their e-scooters into central London to call for a change to what the organiser called “outdated” laws on the issue.

The vehicles can only legally be used on private land in the UK but many people are breaking the law by riding them on roads and pavements.

Peter Williams, 22, who organised the protest, said there had been a “clampdown” on the use of the vehicles.

He added: “We want there to be legislation around this that will make it safer for people and we basically want people to have the option of choosing a green mode of transport rather than using, for example, diesel buses or cars.

“If we take cars off the road, we have to have alternative transport in place.

“Give people the choice, that’s what’s important.”

E-scooters, which typically cost hundreds of pounds, are similar in design to a traditional child’s scooter but are powered by an electric motor, meaning they can reach speeds in excess of 30mph.

On Friday London’s transport authority said that a Government review which could lead to electric scooters being allowed on UK roads should be accelerated.

Transport for London (TfL) said that if the ban on the vehicles ends, maximum speeds and restrictions on where they can be ridden must be among safeguards introduced.

TV presenter and YouTube star Emily Hartridge, 35, became the first person in the UK to be killed while riding an e-scooter when she was struck by a lorry in Battersea, south London, on July 12.

The following day a 14-year-old boy suffered a serious head injury after crashing into a bus stop in Beckenham, south-east London.

E-scooters are currently banned from pavements under the Highway Act 1835 and it is an offence to use them on roads as they do not comply with motorised vehicle requirements such as insurance, tax and driver testing.