Major retailers including Co-op, John Lewis, and Nisa have thrown their support behind The Mirror's campaign to clamp down on shoplifting, as new figures reveal a surge in thefts across the UK. The British Retail Consortium reported eight million shoplifting cases in the year to March, but police recorded only 339,206 incidents, with just 48,218 resulting in charges.
The Co-op Group said shoplifting in the first eight months of this year is up 41% on the same period in 2022, while violence against workers has increased by a quarter. The retailer has lost £33 million to shoplifting this year, with stores targeted by criminal gangs and thieves using weapons such as knives and syringes. Co-op chief Shirine Khoury-Haq described the situation as 'organised looting', adding that the firm faces 1,000 crimes a day.
John Lewis Partnership, which includes the department store and Waitrose, has seen a £12 million rise in shoplifting. Director of security Lucy Brown said gangs steal designer clothes to sell on the black market, and noted that retail crime costs retailers over £1 billion annually. The union Usdaw revealed that three-quarters of staff suffered abuse from customers last year, with thefts behind a third of incidents.
The campaign calls for police to investigate all thefts, amid concerns that the government has downgraded the theft of goods under £200 to a minor offence. The Association of Convenience Stores reported a record 1.1 million thefts over the past year, with 87% of workers verbally abused. Usdaw general secretary Paddy Lillis blamed government cuts in policing and the cost of living crisis for the epidemic of retail crime.
John Lewis and Co-op are among 10 firms participating in Project Pegasus, a police operation using facial recognition technology to stop thieves. The Home Office said the scheme will help tackle serious offenders, and the Policing Minister has asked forces to take a zero-tolerance approach to shoplifting.
