Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to prevent the export of stolen vehicles out of the United Kingdom.

This Government is determined to drive down vehicle crime and we are working with the automotive industry and police to ensure our response is as strong as it can be. I met the NPCC Vehicle Crime lead, ACC Jenny Sims, in November and discussed this matter.

We are providing £250,000 funding this financial year to help support enforcement at ports to prevent stolen vehicles and vehicle parts being shipped abroad, including additional staff and specialist equipment.

There are also intelligence teams that support work to tackle vehicle crime, including Opal, the police national intelligence unit for serious acquisitive crime, and the National Vehicle Intelligence Service (NaVCIS), a policing unit funded by industry, including finance and leasing companies, insurers and hauliers, to provide dedicated specialist intelligence and enforcement.

We are continuing to work closely with the police-led National Vehicle Crime Working Group; through this group a network of vehicle crime specialists has been established, involving every police force in England and Wales, to ensure forces can share information about emerging trends in vehicle crime and better tackle regional issues.

In autumn 2024, driven by the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for vehicle crime, the National Vehicle Crime Reduction Partnership began work, bringing together the police, Home Office and manufacturers.