Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will provide a timeline for the bringing into force of section 47 of the Crime and Policing Act 2026.

Through our Crime and Policing Act, which recently received Royal Assent, we are removing the legislation which makes shop theft of and below £200 a summary-only offence, sending a clear message that any level of shop theft is illegal and will be taken seriously.

Commencement of individual provisions, including section 47, will be brought forward through regulations at the appropriate time, and the Government will set out further details in due course.

We are working also in close partnership with the police and retail sector to mobilise the actions that will make the most difference through our Retail Crime Forum, chaired by the Minister for Crime and Policing.

This includes tackling the most prolific retail offenders where a few individuals can drive a large proportion of the local crime problem. We are testing better approaches to identify and target these individuals.