Crime makes farmers 'afraid to go out at night'

Richard Yates said farmers often felt 'very remote'

Rural crime has made some farmers afraid to go out at night, a farming representative has said.

Richard Yates, a beef, sheep and arable farmer from Middleton Scriven near Bridgnorth, also said: "I'm afraid we're affected by rural crime almost on a weekly basis."

The National Police Chiefs' Council said it would be launching a new three-year crackdown on gangs working in the countryside, while the government said it would be a "vital step" in tackling rural crime.

Mr Yates, who sits on the National Farmer's Union Council, said the criminals were "the type of people who if they're encountered, they threaten to burn your barn down".

He said farmers in his WhatsApp group told him fly-tipping and hare coursing were big problems at the moment.

"Farmers take a lot of pride in establishing our crops and it is very annoying to see tracks, vehicles driven across often getting stuck [and]making a hell of a mess," he said.

Mr Yates said he spoke to a woman on Monday night who farmed near Much Wenlock and told him: "It's got to the stage now where she's frightened to go out at night around her farm and her children are likewise."

He said there were "a number of people who believe they are beyond the law".

The response from farmers had been to block farm entrances, install security cameras and to hide expensive items out of site, he said.

But he believes the police struggle to cope because "the blue line is spread too thinly".

"We feel very remote in certain parts of Shropshire, certainly South Shropshire where I live," he said.

Farmers have set up groups to "look after each other" and Mr Yates said: "We almost have to look after things ourselves."

In the current financial climate, he said he understood people are short of money and people will be tempted to pinch stuff," but tougher sentences could help.

Damien Kelly, the Neighbourhood Inspector for South Shropshire, said West Mercia Police recognised the concerns raised by Mr Yates, including the hare coursing and fly-tipping.

He said he had "finite resources" and a wide area to cover, so had to "work smartly" and use intelligence and information from the public to target problem areas and certain individuals.

But Insp Kelly said he was "really positive" about police numbers after receiving six extra constables and a sergeant in the last six months.

He said: "That is massive for us. It allows us to dedicate more time, more focus on the things that really matter to the rural communities.

"People can sometimes feel as if they're forgotten. I want to reassure them that we absolutely do not."

He said recent operations in his area had resulted in a decline in rural crime, and there was work going on behind the scenes which he could not talk about.

"We can't tell everybody everything that we're doing, because then we're essentially giving criminals the head start and we don't want that," he explained.