Rural crime has been raised in Parliament by Stuart Anderson MP, who has spoken out about the impact it is having on rural communities across South Shropshire. It is part of Rural Crime Action Week, which runs between 21 October and 27 October.
Stuart has spoken about his support and commitment to tackling rural crime. It is the next step in Stuart’s campaign to ‘call time on rural crime’ he launched in August. He called for a rural uplift in the police funding formula and a continuation of the Safer Streets Fund with a focus on rural priorities, after it emerged that many police forces lack sufficient numbers of dedicated officers - with many reporting inadequate supplies of equipment and being pulled into address urban issues.
In Parliament, Stuart since met with West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner Mr John Campion on 10th October to discuss a range of local issues. On 15th October, he then attended an event in Parliament held by the Countryside Alliance in conjunction with the National Rural Crime Network. The event was also attended by Superintendent Andy Huddleston from the National Rural Crime Unit, for which the last government seed funding to establish.
The Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs reported decreased trust in the police in rural areas in the October 2024 release of the Communities and Households Digest. Fifty per cent of people who responded to Country Alliance 2023 Rural Crime Survey didn’t think the police take rural crime seriously, with 35% saying they have had a crime committed against them in the past 12 months.
Stuart Anderson MP said:
“Rural crime has a devastating impact on lives and livelihoods in local communities, such as South Shropshire. It must be promptly addressed so we can restore confidence in policing. That’s why I was delighted to meet with Police and Crime Commissioner, John Campion who shares my concerns. Together, we are determined to see that rural crime is better addressed by government. As I previously said, the police funding formula must be reformed with a rural uplift which recognises the extra challenges of policing remote areas.”
