Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what guidance they plan to issue to farmers to protect themselves from violent crime.

The Statistical Digest of Rural England, published in August 2022 by DEFRA, states “average crime rates (police recorded crime) are lower in rural areas than urban areas”. However, we recognise that some crimes are unique and specific to rural areas.

The Home Office routinely publishes information on the number of offences recorded each quarter and the investigative outcomes of crimes including charges recorded by the police in England and Wales by offence category which can be found at Gov.UK. Our manifesto committed us to use our additional police resources to tackle rural crime. As at 30 September 2022, 15,343 additional uplift officers have been recruited in England and Wales through the Police Uplift Programme, 77% of the target of 20,000 additional officers by March 2023. The deployment of these officers, and the creation of any local rural crime unit, is an operational decision for Chief Constables. In addition, we are taking steps to address issues that we know affect rural communities. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act empowers and equips the police and courts with the powers they need to combat hare coursing. The Government is also providing funding for the National Wildlife Crime Unit.

The Government is also committed to reducing serious violence and putting an end to the tragedies afflicting our communities. This financial year (22/23) we are investing £130 million in tackling serious violent crime, including homicide and knife crime. This includes £64m for Violence Reduction Units, and an extra £30 million to support the police in taking targeted action in parts of England and Wales most affected by serious violence.