Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has carried out an impact assessment of the crime threshold of £200 on levels of crime.

For all police forces in England and Wales, shoplifting is recorded under a single crime code according to the Home Office counting rules; the Theft Act 1968.

The Home Office holds information on all offences recorded by police, including the offence of Shoplifting, which is published by Police Force Area (PFA). Information on the number of shoplifting offences recorded in each financial year from April 2012 to December 2018 can be found in the Open Data tables, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-recorded-crime-open-data-tables

An impact assessment was carried out for the crime threshold of £200 on levels of crime, which can be found here:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/252650/Annex_A_Overarching_IA_Lords.pdf

The Government recognises the cost and disruption that shoplifting can cause to businesses, as well as to communities and consumers. It is important that retailers continue to report incidents of shoplifting and violence to the police so that effective action can be taken against offenders.

The Minister for Crime, Safeguarding and Vulnerability co-chairs the National Retail Crime Steering Group which brings together Government, enforcement and key retail partners to identify and tackle the issues facing retailers in England and Wales. The Group’s key areas of focus include work to tackle shop theft and work to address violence and abuse toward retail staff.