South East Biker Motorcycle Forum

Motorcycle Action Group

As a persecuted minority, motorcyclists need every bit of positive publicity and political back up they can get. The Motorcycle Action Group have been vigorous campaigners on our behalf for many years, but they also offer much more...so what is MAG?

Established in 1973 specifically to campaign for the repeal of the mandatory helmet law, MAG has dramatically broadened the scope of its activities and has now established itself as the legitimate voice of the road-riding biker in the UK.

RAISON D’AITRE
The Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) is an organisation that exists to protect motorcycling from unsympathetic legislation. Beyond that we have taken responsibility for promoting a better motorcycling environment through local lobbying on convenience issues such as bus lane use, congestion charging and parking facilities.

SAFETY
Safety is a major headache for MAG as the measures proposed by ill-informed campaigners frequently conflict with the unfettered enjoyment of motorcycling whilst failing to provide real solutions. MAG has taken onboard safety issues, principally through providing intellectual and financial support to the founders of Bikesafe 2000 and via road safety advice published in our bi-monthly magazine “The Road”.

MOTORCYCLE THEFT
Theft is a major problem for all bikers and MAG has addressed this problem with a reward scheme for identifying thieves, the promotion of secure parking and campaigning for tougher penalties for convicted thieves.

BENEFITS
More recently MAG has become a major service provider to the motorcycling community through negotiating a host of membership benefits ranging from magazine subscription discounts to life insurance, ferry discounts, motorcycle insurance discounts and a European breakdown deal. All of these deals have been arranged to provide financial spin off for MAG so that not only can we arrange tailor-made packages for bikers but those deals fuel MAG’s political agenda at no cost to its members.

SOCIAL
MAG operates the most comprehensive programme of motorcycle based social events in the UK, the numerous local groups nation-wide hold frequent meetings with a strong social element, in addition to which some of the country’s finest rallies and festivals are run by MAG. These help to fund the political action through financing our office and paid staff.

STRUCTURE
MAG operates democratically via a National Committee (NC) comprising 20 regional reps and a number of appointed officers plus a board to handle finances. The regional reps are elected by the members in their region on whose behalf they exercise the only votes at NC meetings. Each region comprises any number of local groups, each run by a local rep. The regional rep provides the channel of communication between the local groups and the NC whose meetings are held bi-monthly and are open to observers from among the membership given adequate warning and the availability of space.

MAG now enjoys access to the ear of government via a network of committees and connections. Our tactics often involve steering legislation rather than opposing it outright and by doing this it is frequently possible to “draw the teeth” of proposals whilst leaving the title of the measure unchanged and thus the dignity of its architects intact, making more friends than enemies. In some areas we have to be emphatic in denouncing crude threats to our pleasure by unreservedly opposing radical threats like telematic control of our engines. MAG promotes road safety but not at the expense of our right to ride, enjoy fundamental freedoms and control of our machines.

MAG will continue to expand its range of member benefits, the spin-off from which will fund an increasingly high public profile for motorcycling and an increasingly ambitious political agenda. Privilege and convenience are the icing on the cake of freedom, which in one word embraces what MAG is essentially about.

Ian Mutch, MAG

MAG was a founder member of the Federation of European Motorcyclists Associations (FEMA) whose crucial Brussels office we help finance. To sustain our presence at all the necessary committees at home and in Brussels costs a considerable sum of money.

The vast majority of riders in this country have chosen to make no contribution to that cost though they profit from our successes. We only ask £20 pa.
Are you prepared to make that commitment ?
Memberships by phone
Tel 01788 570065
For a full picture of MAG’s campaigns, successes and current activities visit-
www.mag-uk.org