Yesterday morning I had the pleasure of visiting the new venue for the Balmoral Show at the Maze site near Lisburn. I would like to congratulate the organisers for what is an excellent venue and show.
My primary reason for being there was to jointly launch the new Rural Crime Unit with the Minister of Justice, David Ford. The very last thing farmers need right now, with everything else that is going on, is to suffer loss or damage at the hands of criminals.
The Unit, with financial support from the Department of Justice and NFU Mutual, will enable the Police Service to dedicate resources to focusing exclusively on rural crime. The Unit will liaise with police across Northern Ireland to provide a co-ordinated response to this issue. There are many initiatives to help and protect the farming community already in place and this new Unit is a very welcome development. It will provide additional support to farmers and assist us in directing resources to where they are needed most. To find out more about how to prevent rural crime visit http://www.psni.police.uk/directory/crime-prevention/farmyard_security.htm or contact your local Crime Prevention Officer who will be very happy to provide you with information and advice.
In stark contrast not that far away from the Show, terrorists were in the final stages of mounting a murder attempt on police officers who, like their colleagues at Balmoral Park, were out in the community delivering a service and working to keep people safe. Thankfully the officers were uninjured but those who carried out this attack showed a blatant disregard for the safety of those who live in that area. When you see images of bullet holes in parked cars it shows not just what a lucky escape local residents had, but also the recklessness of the terrorists. There is no such thing as a responsible or acceptable attack on police, but this attack was particularly indiscriminate. However, despite this potentially murderous attack, those officers and their colleagues are back out again today, undeterred, supporting and protecting communities.
Whether it’s preventing rural crime or detecting those responsible for acts of terror, your support is critical in the form of information and reporting suspicious activity. Our desire, and ability, to provide the finest personal, professional and protective policing service is greatly enhanced when the police and communities work together. With your help and support we will continue to make a difference.
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