Tackling rural crime is clearly important but it is not for the Home Office to set targets for local policing. We have introduced Police and Crime Commissioners to ensure democratic accountability for local crime and policing matters. They are best placed to set priorities for tackling crime in their local area, including addressing the needs of rural communities.
Local policing priorities are determined by police and crime commissioners, following consultation with the chief constable and the public, and are published in their Police and Crime Plan. We have transferred responsibility for crime statistics to the independent Office for National Statistics, introduced a new Crime Outcomes Framework to provide greater transparency and abolished 'one size fits all' performance targets. Under this Government, the police have just one objective: to cut crime.<\/p>
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<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1528", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Sir Mike Penning"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Hemel Hempstead"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Mike Penning"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2015-03-24", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2015-03-24T15:23:01.437Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Home Office"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Home Office"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2015-03-19", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Crime: Rural Areas"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department sets targets for reductions in rural crime; and if she will make a statement.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/384", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Baroness McIntosh of Pickering"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Thirsk and Malton"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Miss Anne McIntosh"} ], "uin" : "228350"} ], "itemsPerPage" : 10, "page" : 0, "startIndex" : 1, "totalResults" : 1, "type" : ["http://purl.org/linked-data/api/vocab#ListEndpoint", "http://purl.org/linked-data/api/vocab#Page"]} }