Well, well, well...

Pimlico Plumbers founder Charlie Mullins has now apologised after he was this week suspended from the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, for saying "someone should kill" Sadiq Khan over ULEZ and "it's time to dump the Muslim mayor".

road.cc contacted Mullins' representatives about the suspension and accusations that his posts were racially charged, but never received a reply. Instead this morning the businessman, also known for his staunch anti-cycling stance, apologised while speaking to Talk TV (link is external)...

"I unreservedly apologise and withdraw my remarks. I went too far. Twitter/X is right to take the action it did," he said.

X suspended the 70-year-old multimillionaire businessman's account for violating the social media platform's rules. It's not the first time Mullins' thoughts on transport policy have made headlines...

In 2020, he commissioned a Transport for London parody poster of a cyclist struggling to carry tools which said cyclists were "taking f****** liberties".

An additional blog post, shared on the company's website, then took aim at cycling infrastructure and "cycle fascists", which Mullins' PR team claimed were responsible for increasing the length of van journeys in the capital.

"I've had enough of cycle fascists whining about their precious road space when what they really want is to run all non-cycles off the road," the blog, written in the first person as if by Mullins himself, said. "And I'm also sick of the bike bureaucrats who have taken over TfL, and who as we speak are painting great swathes of Central London's roads blue, making it next to impossible to run any kind of service business.

"Businesses like mine, and many others that rely on the transport of large amounts of equipment, tools and goods about the city cannot operate on bicycles. It is a ridiculous proposition. Any fool can figure out it doesn't work. And please don't tell me to get a cargo bike because unless they are the size of a van or a lorry and can be made secure they are exactly as useful as a chocolate teapot."

The blog was later edited following a backlash, before a month later the plumbing provider posted a video on social media asking for help to track down a cyclist who allegedly kicked out a wing mirror on Mullins' Bentley.

However, a number of users called out the footage as fake, with one accusing the firm of staging a publicity stunt and a "false flag" attack to whip up resentment against bike riders.

https://road.cc/content/news/cycling-live-blog-1-september-2023-303593#live-blog-item-49169