§ Mr. FlightTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what initiatives he proposes to reduce crime in villages and small towns. [20136]
§ Mr. MichaelThe Government recognise that rural communities have very different needs to urban communities. Whilst they suffer from most of the same types of crime as urban areas, there are also those crimes which are particular to the countryside, such as theft of livestock and farm equipment.
Due to the geographical nature of the countryside, police responses to incidents of crime cannot always be as quick as they and the public would like. Because of this, there is an onus on people to take precautions against becoming victims of crime. There are now many excellent partnership schemes which have developed between the police and the local communities and the creation of many, and diverse, "Watch" schemes is testimony to their success.
The provision for new statutory duties for local authorities and the police jointly to analyse and identify local problems of crime and disorder in the Crime and Disorder Bill will enhance those schemes already in existence. With input from local communities, a strategy will be drawn up and implemented to tackle those problems. This will provide an opportunity to take stock of the crime problems of both rural and urban areas.