Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department has taken to help prevent white diesel thefts following the changes to use of rebated diesel introduced from 1 April 2022.

The Government is working closely with police and industry partners to do everything we can collectively to drive down acquisitive crime, including theft of diesel.

The Home Office funded the set-up of the National Infrastructure Crime Reduction Partnership (NICRP), which ensures national co-ordination of policing and law enforcement partners to tackle crime affecting rail networks, utility, agricultural and construction companies. Reports of fuel theft are being mapped through this Partnership to provide insights on the scale of these thefts and potential preventative measures.

Fuel users who store any type of diesel in tanks or in vehicles and machinery on their site(s) should continue to take steps to ensure this is stored securely. Practical crime prevention advice is published on the Secured by Design website, developed by the Police Crime Prevention Initiatives: https://www.securedbydesign.com/guidance/crime-prevention-advice/fuel-theft.