New Bill tackles agricultural equipment theft

A Countryside Alliance briefing on the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Bill, scheduled for its Second Reading in the House of Commons on Friday 02 December.

• The Countryside Alliance fully supports this Bill and has assisted in developing it alongside other stakeholders in farming, insurance, equipment manufacturing and the police.
• As long-term campaigners on the issue of combating rural crime and a founding member of the National Rural Crime Network, the Countryside Alliance conducts an annual survey of rural communities' experiences and perceptions over the past calendar year. The 2022 survey is currently ongoing. The results of last year's survey were published in early December 2021.
• The 2021 survey revealed that 43% of respondents reported having had a crime committed against them in the past year and of those, 32% reported having experienced agricultural machinery theft. This was the third most reported crime.
• In the 2020 Rural Crime Survey the year before, agricultural machinery theft was reported as respondents' top priority for police to tackle.
• We call on parliamentarians and the Government to support this Bill, secure its passage and monitor its effectiveness closely.

To read the briefing in full, please click here.

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