Half of rural communities think police don’t take crime seriously, survey shows

EXCLUSIVEA survey by Countryside Alliance, revealed to i, found that the vast majority of those in rural communities felt police were not taking crime in their area seriously

The overwhelming majority of rural communities see crime as a significant problem in their area and half believe police are not taking crime seriously, a new survey shows.

According to a Countryside Alliance survey, shared with i, 97 per cent of those surveyed said that rural crime was a “significant” issue in their community.

The most common crimes experienced by those polled were fly-tipping, agricultural machinery theft and trespassing, with other frequent offences including hare poaching and actions relating to animal rights activism.