Unacceptable levels of shop theft causing serious harm to society

The Justice and Home Affairs Committee today publishes a letter to the Minister for Policing, Crime and Fire Prevention, Dame Diana Johnson MP, after conducting an inquiry into shop theft.

• Letter dated 4 November 2024 from the Rt Hon Lord Foster of Bath PC, Chair Justice and Home Affairs Committee to the Rt Hon Dame Diana Johnson MP, Minister for Policing, Crime and Fire Prevention, Home Office regarding the outcome of the Committee's short inquiry into shop theft
• Inquiry: Tackling Shoplifting
• Justice and Home Affairs Committee

The Letter

The Justice and Home Affairs Committee conducted an inquiry into shop theft. The Committee finds that shop theft is an underreported crime that is not being effectively tackled, leading to a devastating impact on the retail sector and the wider economy.

The Committee heard that there are almost 17 million incidents of shop theft annually, with few leading to an arrest and costing the retail sector almost £2 billion last year.

The nature of the offence has evolved from individualised offending to relentless, large-scale, organised operations accompanied by unprecedented levels of violence. Shop theft is now seen as a lucrative profit-making opportunity which is being exploited by organised criminal networks.

There is a widespread perception that shop theft is not treated seriously by the police. The Committee recognises the need for quicker reporting systems, better data collection and intelligence sharing between police forces across the UK.

The Committee welcomes the work of Pegasus, the new national scheme to tackle organised crime in the retail sector and recommends that existing schemes such as Business Crime Reduction Partnerships (linking police and local businesses) should all be part of a National Standards Accreditation Scheme.

Conclusion

The Committee concludes:

• The outdated term “shoplifting” serves to trivialise the severity of the offence and should be phased out.
• The Committee supports the plan to repeal the offence of “low-value shoplifting” under section 176 of the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act, which in practice is decriminalising shop theft where the value of the goods does not exceed £200.
• The Committee supports the creation of a standalone offence of assaulting a retail worker.
• Improved reporting systems are required to enable retailers to report crime to the police quickly and easily.
• The Committee recommends improving mechanisms for police and criminal justice systems to recognise and record when a crime has taken place in a retail setting.
• Increased funding to community-based reoffending and rehabilitation initiatives are crucial to help divert prolific drug and alcohol addicted offenders away from further offending.
• Public awareness campaigns are needed to target the stolen goods market.
• The Committee supports the introduction of regulations and best practice guidance for the use of facial recognition technology by private companies.

Chair’s Comments Lord Foster of Bath, Chair of the Justice and Home Affairs Committee said:

“In March 2024, 443,9953 incidents of shop theft were recorded by police – a 30% increase on the previous year and the highest-ever level since comparable records began over twenty years ago. But the figures are “a drop in the ocean” when compared with likely real figures estimated at 17 million with devastating consequences for businesses and families.

“The scale of the shop theft problem within England and Wales is totally unacceptable and action, like that underway in the Pegasus scheme, is vital and urgent.

"There’s no silver bullet. But, if adopted, the recommendations in our report should help tackle the problem and help keep the public and our economy safer.”