I have continued my campaign against anti-social behaviour on motorised scooters and quad bikes by meeting the Scottish Government to raise concerns. The meeting followed questions I raised in the Scottish Parliament and a visit to a local farmer to see the damage caused to his farm by the inappropriate use of such bikes.

I have been campaigning on the issue following a number of constituents getting in touch to highlight the inappropriate use of the vehicles in their area, particularly around Methil, Wemyss villages and Kirkcaldy.

The complaints I have received includes the riding and racing of the bikes and scooters on pavements, streets and fields. I raised the issues with the Minister for Community Safety and Legal Affairs during General Questions shortly before Christmas and met with the Minister in the Scottish Parliament.

During the meeting I called for the Government to strengthen fixed penalty notices to give the police more ‘tools in their box’ to deal with problems around quad bike usage. I am due to meet shortly with local police in Methil who are attempting to deal with the problem through ‘Operation Ducati’.

I have seen the damage these bikes can cause to our farmers and I know that they are becoming a real menace to locals who want to be able to safety walk down their own streets.

The police, through Operation Ducati, are making efforts to clamp down on those using their bikes inappropriately but it is important that they have all the tools in their box to deal with them.

That is why I asked the Minister if his Government is open to strengthening fixed penalty notices to ensure we can effectively deal with such problems and tackle antisocial behaviour.