Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the consistency of crime recording practices between police forces for offences involving (a) livestock, (b) horses, (c) agricultural vehicles and machinery and (d) fly-tipping and rural waste crime.

The Government recognises that there can be challenges in responding to rural crime and is taking a coordinated, cross-system approach to tackling this issue. The Home Office has worked closely with Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to support the National Police Chiefs’ Council in delivering their Rural and Wildlife Crime Strategy for 2025–28. This strategy provides a framework through which policing and its partners can work together to tackle the crimes that predominantly affect rural communities, including organised criminality affecting farms and agricultural businesses.

Whilst rural crime is not recorded as a distinct category within police recorded crime and therefore cannot be assessed separately, relevant offences, including theft, burglary, vehicle crime and certain wildlife offences, are recorded within the police recorded crime framework. The Home Office supports consistent crime recording through the National Crime Recording Standard and the Home Office Counting Rules. Chief Constables are responsible for ensuring offences are recorded in line with these standards, while His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services independently assesses the quality and consistency of crime recording across police forces.