Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she has taken to work with relevant authorities to reduce instances of car theft in (a) England and (b) Romford.

This Government is determined to drive down vehicle crime and we are working with the automotive industry and police, including working closely with the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead on the issue, to ensure the strongest response possible to this damaging crime.

Through the Crime and Policing Bill, we have introduced measures to ban electronic devices used to steal vehicles, empowering the police and courts to target the criminals using, manufacturing and supplying them. This will support the changes manufacturers continue to make to prevent thefts.

We also provided £250,000 funding in the last financial year to help support work at the ports to prevent stolen vehicles and vehicle parts being shipped abroad.

Via the National Vehicle Crime Reduction Partnership and the police-led National Vehicle Crime Working Group, we are focusing on prevention and deterrence of theft of and from vehicles. This includes training police officers on the methods used to steal vehicles, encouraging vehicle owners to secure their vehicles, and working with industry to address vulnerabilities in vehicles.

In recent weeks, the Security Minister and I have each met vehicle manufacturers to discuss these issues. Officials also regularly engage and work with industry to discuss workable solutions to help prevent vehicle theft.