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Organised Crime: Rural Areas

Answer

Rural crime can have a devastating impact on rural communities and the agricultural sector. Rural crime is not recorded as a distinct category within police recorded crime, so it is not possible to produce a single, centrally verified assessment of its scale. However, NFU Mutual’s latest Rural Crime Report estimates that the overall cost of rural crime fell by 6% in 2025.

The Government acknowledges there is more to do, that’s why we are implementing the Equipment Theft Act to make agricultural equipment harder to steal and easier to recover, including new requirements for forensic marking and registration of All Terrain Vehicles (ATVs) and agricultural GPS units.

We recognise that organised criminal groups are involved in rural offences, including the theft of agricultural machinery, livestock and fuel. The Home Office is therefore providing over £800,000 in 2026/27 for the National Rural Crime Unit and the National Wildlife Crime Unit. These specialist capabilities provide operational support, intelligence, analysis and coordination to police forces across the UK, helping them to identify, disrupt and pursue offenders operating across force boundaries. The National Rural Crime Unit has helped recover £32 million worth of stolen machinery, vehicles and equipment since it was established.

The Home Office worked closely with DEFRA and the National Police Chiefs’ Council to publish the 2025-2028 Rural and Wildlife Crime Strategy, which further strengthens the policing response by setting national operational and organisational priorities and supporting intelligence-led action against organised criminality.

Visibility and responsiveness are critical to building trust in rural communities, which is why our Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee is strengthening local policing presence in all areas, including rural areas. By 31 March 2026, forces had delivered 3,814 additional neighbourhood policing personnel, and our target remains 13,000 by the end of the parliament. In addition, through the guarantee every neighbourhood, rural or urban, has named and contactable officers dedicated to tackling local crime and anti-social behaviour, with a response to non-urgent enquiries within 72 hours. These measures, alongside strengthened specialist national capability, will support forces to prevent and investigate rural crime and protect rural communities.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

29045

Session

2026-27

Grouped for answer

Yes

Subjects

Organised crime Rural areas

Link

View this Written question on www.parliament.uk