Shoplifting in Scotland has surged to a record high, with Police Scotland recording 53,424 offences in the year to March, an increase of almost 20 per cent. These offences account for over 45 per cent of all dishonesty crimes, according to official data.
Crimes Against Shop Workers Also Rise
The figures also show nearly 7,000 crimes against shop workers were logged during the same period. This comes amid warnings of a “new frontier opening up in organised crime”, with retail theft increasingly linked to more organised and coordinated activity.
Organised Crime Gangs Behind the Surge
Police have identified more than 40 organised crime gangs believed to be driving the rising retail offences. These networks operate across the country, with goods often stolen to order or quickly offloaded on the black market.
Political Criticism of SNP's Justice Approach
Scottish Conservative justice spokesman Stephen Kerr criticised the SNP Government, saying: “The SNP’s soft-touch justice system has effectively decriminalised retail crime, while their underfunding of the police has left the force with few resources to tackle this crimewave. Shoplifting has become industrialised by organised crime gangs, and small businesses and customers are paying a heavy price.”
Scottish Labour justice spokesperson Pauline McNeill added: “The SNP have allowed police numbers to be cut to the bone and, as a result, too many people just no longer feel safe in their local areas. These statistics show that there is a new frontier opening up in organised crime. We must have a revised strategy on how to deal with the mass scale of shoplifting. The ineffective fines that are dished out do next to nothing to deter the criminals. Enough is enough.”
Police Crackdown and Taskforce Success
Police chiefs insist a targeted crackdown is making inroads. The Retail Crime Taskforce (RCT), launched in April last year, has supported 1,300 arrests and secured more than 6,400 charges for retail crime in its first 12 months. The taskforce is now active in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Tayside, targeting the areas most affected by thieves.
Despite improvements in detection rates and retailer confidence, Police Scotland acknowledge that shoplifting offences are still rising. Assistant Chief Constable Tim Mairs noted an increase in the number of under-18s resorting to shoplifting over the past five years. He said: “High demand, domestically and internationally, for stolen items and cheaper products is making shoplifting an appealing venture. This could particularly apply to those under the age of criminal responsibility and under 25 who will be aware of potential criminal justice outcomes for shoplifting and see it as a low risk/high reward crime.”
Scottish Government Response
A Scottish Government spokesman said: “Police Scotland established the taskforce with an initial £3 million of Scottish Government funding, with a further £3 million committed annually to 2029 to sustain this work. This is in addition to record funding of over £1.7 billion for policing in 2026-27.”
