DANGEROUS cycling could be prosecuted in the same way as dangerous driving under new laws proposed by ministers.

The proposals follow the death in February 2016 of 44-year-old mother-of-two Kim Briggs, who was knocked over and killed by a London bicycle courier. The cyclist, Charlie Alliston, was prosecuted under Victorian laws of causing bodily harm by wanton and furious driving.

Cyclists can currently be prosecuted for riding without due care and attention. Last month, North Swindon cyclist Thomas Michael Chapman, 22, was fined £100 and ordered to pay £200 for hitting a pedestrian as he pedalled too fast along the pavement on Cheney Manor Road.

Campaigners have accused the government of “tinkering around the edges”. Of 448 pedestrians killed on Britain’s roads in 2016, only three cases involved bicycles. Duncan Dollimore, head of campaigns at Cycling UK, branded the system by which dangerous or careless drivers are prosecuted a lottery that left relatives feeling let down. He added: “Adding one or two new offences specific to cyclists would be merely tinkering around the edges.”

The government has also announced proposals to update the Highway Code to combat the so-called close passing of cyclists.

The Department of Transport’s Jesse Norman said: “All these measures are designed to support the continued growth of cycling and walking, with all the benefits they bring.”