Written questions by Anderson.

What assessment she has made of recent trends in levels of rural crime rates in Buckinghamshire in the last five years.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes estimates, from the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW), on the proportion of adults who had been a victim of crime. This is broken down by whether the household was located in a rural or urban location. The latest data can be found here:https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/datasets/crimeinenglandandwalesannualtrendanddemographictables/currentData is not available for county areas such as Buckinghamshire.This Government is determined to tackle rural crime and is committed to safeguarding rural communities, with tougher measures to clamp down on anti-social behaviour, strengthened neighbourhood policing, and stronger laws to prevent farm theft.We are taking a new approach by working closely with the National Police Chief’s Council to develop the next iteration of the Rural and Wildlife Crime Strategy, to ensure the government’s Safer Streets Mission benefits every community no matter where they live, including rural communities.This new financial year the Home Office will be providing the first funding since 2023 for the National Rural Crime Unit (£365,000) as well as continuing funding for the National Wildlife Crime Unit (£450,000). This will allow these specialist units to continue their work in tackling rural and wildlife crime which can pose unique challenges for policing given the scale and isolation of rural areas.

How many additional police officers have been recruited under the Police Uplift Programme in Thames Valley Police.

Table U2 of the data tables accompanying the final ‘Police Officer Uplift’ release, covering the position as at 31 March 2023, provides a breakdown of additional officers recruited through the Police Uplift Programme by month since October 2019. These data can be accessed here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/64b6d5d30ea2cb000d15e560/police-officer-uplift-final-position-as-at-march-2023-tables-260723.ods. Data are provided on a headcount basis and broken down by Police Force Area.During the Police Uplift Programme, Thames Valley recruited 784 additional police officers attributable to the Police Uplift Programme. This was against an allocation to recruit 609 additional police officers for the three-year programme.Reporting on the size and composition of the police workforce continues on a bi-annual basis in the ‘Police Workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-workforce-england-and-wales.

What funding has been allocated to community safety initiatives in (a) Buckinghamshire and (b) Milton Keynes.

Funding of £627.4 million has been allocated to Thames Valley Police in 2025-25, an increase of up to £40.8 million when compared to the 2024-25 funding settlement.It is for locally elected Police and Crime Commissioners, or Mayoral equivalents, to make decisions on how they use their funding and deploy their resources using their knowledge of local need.

If she will make an estimate of the projected annual quota for the Seasonal Worker Visa Scheme over the next five years.

The Home Office works closely with the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to set the annual quotas for the Seasonal Worker route. This process takes into consideration a range of data and information including previous years’ usages, work force plans and industry intelligence because the Government keeps the annual quota numbers under review, we are unable to provide an estimated projection of what the visa numbers will be over the next five years.

What criteria her Department uses to establish the annual number of Seasonal Worker visas.

The Home Office works closely with the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to set the annual quotas for the Seasonal Worker route. This process takes into consideration a range of data and information including previous years’ usages, work force plans and industry intelligence because the Government keeps the annual quota numbers under review, we are unable to provide an estimated projection of what the visa numbers will be over the next five years.