A hedge trimmer (1) comprises an electric motor (3) and at least two cutting blades (5,6), each blade comprising at least one row of teeth with the motor being connected to at least one of the blades so that rotation of the motor (4) produces a movement of at least one of the blades relative to the other, a first user operable switch (10) for operation of the hedge trimmer blades and a second user operable switch (11) which enables a user to select between at least two operating modes of the hedge trimmer, the two modes comprising a hedge trimming mode in which operation of the first user operable switch causes a reciprocal motion of the at least one blade, and a secateur mode in which operation of the switch causes a single cutting cycle to be performed. A two ratio gearbox may be provided to enable the blades to move at a lower speed and with higher torque when in the secateur mode compared with the hedge trimming mode.
