You have to be specifically trained to pursue a 2 wheeler, in an appropriate vehicle, and the pursuit must then be very quickly authorised by a suitably trained inspector or above or it gets called off.
Coppers for the most part take it very seriously. Aside from not wanting some innocent passing granny to get hurt, we have this ridiculous legal system that potentially holds the bobby responsible for the villains behaviour if they fall off and kill themselves.
I quit RPU in a huff about an investigation into my behaviour. I was stuck in Friday night traffic on a marked off road bike, and unbeknown to me a lad on a stolen moped a hundred yards behind saw me, panicked, tried to hop up the kerb to escape down an alley but fell off and broke his leg. I wasnt even aware of this until other motorists made me aware of milladdo's predicament, yet because he was reacting to my mere presence I was investigated.
I threw a wobbly and quit RPU. Each officer owns their own driving licences, they cannot be ordered to exercise their S.87 rights to break speed limits, jump red lights, ignore signs, etc, so the farce are completely reliant on each officers good will. The best they could do was move me to a community team, doubtless a moved intended as a punishment for standing up the authority, but it back fired - no nights, lots of tea, a feeling that I was actually helping people, and time to study for my skippers exam was hardly punishment.
So year, if Johnny Scumbag goes flying passed a marked IRV on an e-moto theres every chance he wont get pursued.