Today, Labour have announced that police forces will received an additional £800,000 to tackle rural crime.
The National Rural Crime Unit and National Wildlife Crime Unit will receive the government funding to continue their work in tackling rural and wildlife crime, as well as protecting farmers from the theft of farm equipment – including machinery, vehicles, GPS trackers and fuel.
The Rural Crime Report 2024 by the NFU estimated that the cost of rural crime in the UK was £52.8m in 2023, an increase of 4.3% since 2022.
Terry Jermy MP, Member of Parliament for South West Norfolk, said this showed the Government was serious about tackling rural crime.
Mr Jermy has been visiting farms across South West Norfolk over recent months with many raising concerns about rural crime.
Jermy said, “The Labour Government wants to protect our communities, our countryside, our farmers, and our wildlife. This money will be valuable to address concerns including livestock worrying, fly tipping, and the theft of major equipment that farmers need. We have seen under the Conservatives that rural crime has increased, and this investment will support such a key sector of our economy and environment.”
Minister for Crime and Policing Dame Diana Johnson said, “When you report a crime, it should be properly investigated, with victims having faith that justice will be delivered, and criminals punished.
“But too often victims of crime in rural communities have been left feeling undervalued and isolated, whether it be famers having equipment or livestock stolen, or villages targeted by car thieves and county lines gangs.
“This new funding, alongside the forthcoming Rural and Wildlife Crime Strategy and our Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, will help deliver the change rural communities deserve, ensuring no matter where you live your streets are safe and police responsive to your local needs as we continue to deliver on our Plan for Change.”
The government is determined to ensure its Safer Streets Mission applies to all communities no matter where they live with rural communities set to benefit from more visible local policing through the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee.
This will deliver 13,000 more neighbourhood police officers and Police Community Support Officers by the end of Parliament as part of the Prime Minister’s Plan for Change.
Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Steve Reed said, “For too long, rural crime has gone unpunished. Organised crime, fly-tipping and farm theft blight our countryside. This Government will crackdown on these criminals and bring them to justice with specialist rural policing units to protect farmers and our rural communities.”
The new funding follows the government’s flagship Crime and Policing Bill, which gives police and local authorities new powers to tackle crime, including crimes that do real damage to rural communities.
This includes new measures to enable statutory guidance to be issued to local authorities to support them to make full and proper use of their fly-tipping enforcement powers.
Alongside new warrantless powers of entry for police to enter premises identified by electronic mapping giving officers a valuable tool to tackle stolen equipment and machinery from farms and agricultural businesses.
The government is committed to implementing the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023 which will make it harder for criminals to sell stolen agricultural equipment. Secondary legislation is due to be introduced later this year.
Superintendent Andrew Huddleston, Head of National Rural Crime Unit said, “This funding is critical and will enable information sharing and joint operations to continue across the UK facilitated by the National Rural Crime Co-Ordinator.
“The contribution to the replacement of the Operational Team vehicles is equally important as it will allow the continued support of forces on the ground and recovery of equipment which since the inception of the team in 2023 stands at over £22 million in recovered stolen equipment.”
Chief Inspector Kevin Lacks-Kelly, Head of UK Wildlife Crime said, “This funding is a significant step forward in the fight against wildlife crime. By enhancing our intelligence capabilities and strengthening enforcement, we will be better equipped to protect endangered species and disrupt the criminals who exploit them.
“The UK is seen as a centre of excellence in tackling this global issue, working closely with international partners to ensure a safer future for our planet’s wildlife.
ENDS
