Rural crime: 'Significant silence' over thefts, farmers say

Robert Redman arrived at his yard to find windows smashed and GPS equipment stolen

Farmers have said they are receiving "significant silence" from police services as rural thefts plague the harvest season.

Police figures show construction and agricultural machinery theft rose by 300% in the first quarter of the year in England and Wales.

Berkshire farmer William Emmett said it was an "ongoing" issue.

Thames Valley PCC Matthew Barber said the force had "invested heavily in a rural crime task force".

Thefts from farms in Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire include garden work equipment, chain saws and quad bikes.

Mr Emmett, of Hornbuckle Farm in Bray, is also vice chair of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Rural Forum.

He said the previous Conservative administration had promised four more police officers.

"Since then we have had a significant silence from the new regime," he said.

He added: "[The] 101 [non-emergency telephone service] is pointless.

"You can never get through, you have to resort to 999 - that's not what the emergency services really want.

"We just want some police presence as quickly as possible."

Robert Redman said a drone flew over his yard two weeks before the break-in

Robert Redman had several GPS units stolen from his farm in Oxfordshire in May.

He said he saw a drone several weeks before which he believes was "casing the premises out".

Nationally, GPS thefts doubled to almost £500,000 between January and April, according to rural insurer NFU Mutual.

Conservative PCC Mr Barber said the complaints were "very disappointing".

"We've invested heavily in a rural crime task force. Getting through on 101 and making it easier to report online is something I want to work on."

Supt Andrew Huddleston, who leads the National Rural Crime Unit, offered some advice to farmers.

"Either forensically marking, painting or scratching your farm name or post code onto your GPS makes them less attractive to thieves and harder to sell on," he said.

Bob Henderson, of NFU Mutual, said rural thefts could cause "significant" supply chain problems and lead to "serious disruption" to farmers.

Thames Valley Police and Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead have not responded to BBC requests for comment.