To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to increase funding to encourage the uptake of cycling at the level of the European average.

The Coalition Government's level of funding for cycling compares very favourably with other European countries. In this Parliament we have allocated £3.50 (€4.20) per person per year to cycling (based on £277 million invested since 2010 directly for cycling and the £600 million allocated for the Local Sustainable Transport Fund where 94 out of 96 projects contain a cycling element). For example, research by the European Cyclists' Federation states that national funding in Denmark is only around €4 and around €3 in the Netherlands—two countries recognised for their commitment to cycling.

Since February 2012 the Government has made an additional £159 million available for cycling infrastructure in England. As part of this, through the £77 million Cycling Ambition Grants, eight cities across England will receive an investment in cycling in excess of £10 per head per year. Along with local contributions, this equates to £18 per head of population across the funding period. City areas that will benefit are: Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, Birmingham, West of England, Newcastle, Cambridge, Norwich and Oxford.