A cyclist who contested his fine for riding ‘no-handed’ had his charges dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) just a day before he was due to appear in court.
Barrister Paul Powlesland was fined last year for cycling through the City of London without his hands on the handlebars.
He contested the fine as he felt it was not illegal to ride his bike without touching the handlebars.
The barrister was due to appear in London South-Central Magistrates’ Court today but the CPS dropped the charges late yesterday.
Mr Powlesland said on X: ‘The CPS have dropped the charges at the last minute & it appears I was correct to stick to my principles that I have done nothing wrong and to demand my day in court.
‘I will celebrate tomorrow by cycling through the City no-handed, as I have been doing safely and legally for over a decade.’
Last year Mr Powlesland recorded a viral video, at a separate time from when he was fined, where he confronted a police officer about his ticket.
In the video, the officer said: ‘Cycling with no hands on the handlebars places others at risk and contravenes Article 2 of the Human Rights Act.’
Barrister Paul Powlesland was fined last year for cycling through the City of London without his hands on the handlebars
The female City of London Police officer was filmed speaking to Mr Powlesland in a video on X
Mr Powlesland was stopped at rush hour in Queen Victoria Street next to the distinctive Coq D’Argent building (pictured, right)
Article 2 of the Human Rights Act refers to the Right to Life, ensuring everyone’s life is protected by law.
Attempting to clarify the comment, the police officer said: ‘It endangers people on the road.’
The video has now been viewed more than four million times.
Mr Powlesland said on X yesterday: ‘Whilst I’m glad that I don’t have to go to court tomorrow, I’m annoyed that [City of London Police] have been able to waste my time and taxpayers’ money pursuing something so trivial and which is clearly not illegal.’
He said that going to court for the incident ‘must be good news as it means City police must have solved all of the robberies, burglaries, fraud, assault, bike theft, dangerous driving and other serious offences.
‘If not, I’m not sure how they could justify spending lots of taxpayers’ money, days of officer time, and a day of time in our horrendously backlogged courts, prosecuting something which does not appear illegal, which thousands of cyclists do without issue every day and which has not caused harm to anyone else or myself.’
In the UK there is no specific law that makes cycling no-handed a crime – unlike in Cyprus, which made it illegal in 2016.
A cyclist allegedly caught riding no-handed confronted a police officer about the fine
Mr Powlesland was due to appear in London South-Central Magistrates’ Court today but the CPS dropped the charges at the last minute
But there is a grey area which allows police to fine riders deemed to be cycling dangerously and not in proper control of their bikes.
And while the Highway Code does not expressly forbid bikers from cycling no-handed, there are rules in place against riding dangerously.
Rule 66 of the code states ‘you should avoid any actions that could reduce your control of your cycle.’
While rule 68 adds ‘you MUST NOT ride in a dangerous, careless or inconsiderate manner’.
Mr Powlesland was penalised under Section 29 of the Road Traffic Act 1988.
The barrister and climate campaigner received an email on 12 February to say that his charges had been dropped because there was ‘not enough evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction’.
He claimed on X that the CPS was ‘being disingenuous in suggesting that they dropped this case due to lack of evidence.’
He added: ‘The facts have always been agreed: I was cycling down Bishopsgate without my hands on the handlebars.
‘The only thing in dispute is whether such actions constitute a crime.
Pictured is Mr Powlesland’s post on X, which has been seen almost four million times
The barrister and climate campaigner received an email on 12 February to say that his charges had been dropped
‘The fact that they have dropped the case suggests that the CPS have realised that cycling without hands is not a crime: why not just admit this, rather than pretend it is anything to do with lack of evidence?’
He later posted: ‘To add insult to injury, I was informed yesterday that the charges against the person who burgled my boat and left their bail sheet there (showing they were released from custody a few hours before) got away with it because the CPS offered no evidence.’
A spokesman for City of London Police told the Daily Mail: ‘We note the decision from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to discontinue the case against Mr Powlesland for careless and inconsiderate cycling under s29 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 on 5 March 2025.
‘A fixed penalty notice was issued after an officer observed him riding with his arms stretched out and not holding the handlebars of his bike during rush hour.
‘On the 3 July 2025, a social media post was published which showed a clip from a three-minute long interaction between a cyclist and a City of London Police officer on the 2 April 2025.
‘The cyclist approached the officer and during their chat, the Human Rights Act was mentioned.
‘The cyclist was not ticketed on this day, but he had approached the officer because she had issued him a ticket on the 5 March 2025 in the City of London.’
The CPS was contacted for comment.
