Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to help tackle the theft of farm machinery in rural areas.

We will be implementing the Equipment Theft Act, which is aimed at preventing equipment being stolen, making it harder for criminals to sell on stolen vehicles and equipment and assisting the police with identifying the owner.

We published the Government Response to the Call for Evidence on 17 October which sets out the scope for the necessary secondary legislation to be introduced.

The Act’s secondary legislation will require forensic marking to be applied to new All-Terrain Vehicles and for the details to be registered on a property database, for forensic marking to be applied to all new GPS units for use in agricultural and commercial settings, and for the details to be registered on a property database

Additionally, the Crime and Policing Bill introduces a new power for the police to enter and search premises to which items have been electronically tracked by GPS or other means, which will help the police in tackling stolen equipment and machinery.

This financial year we are providing the first Home Office funding since 2023 for the National Rural Crime Unit. This funding will enable the Unit to continue to increase collaboration across police forces, harnessing the latest technology and data to target the serious organised crime groups involved in crimes like equipment theft from farms.