Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he has taken to work with relevant authorities to tackle shoplifting in (a) England and (b) Romford constituency.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
The Government recognises the significant impact shoplifting has on businesses, communities and consumers. The Crime Survey for England and Wales shows neighbourhood crime is down 51% compared to findings from the year ending March 2010.
However, Police Recorded Crime figures show shoplifting offences increased by 25% in the 12 months to June 2023. Statistics also show the number of people charged with shoplifting offences has risen by 29% in the year ending June 2023.
We have recently made significant steps to improve the police response to retail crime, including shoplifting.
In October, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) published the Retail Crime Action Plan. Through this Plan, all forces across England and Wales have committed to prioritise police attendance at the scene where violence has been used towards shop staff, where an offender has been detained by store security, and where evidence needs to be secured and can only be done by police personnel. Additionally, where CCTV or other digital images are secured, police will run this through the Police National Database to aid efforts to identify prolific offenders or potentially dangerous individuals.
This builds on the NPCC commitment that police forces across England and Wales will follow up all crimes where there is actionable evidence and the chance of identifying an offender, including shoplifting.
October also saw the launch of Pegasus, a unique private-public partnership, which involves retailers providing data, intelligence and evidence to Opal, the national police intelligence unit on organised acquisitive crime, to develop a better strategic picture and help forces crack down on serious offenders.
The Government is clear that violent and abusive behaviour towards any worker, particularly those who provide a valuable service to the public, is never acceptable.
In 2022 we took the significant step to introduce a statutory aggravating factor for assault against those who are serving the public. Section 156 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 means the public facing nature of a victim’s role will be considered an aggravating factor when it comes to sentencing for assault offences, allowing the court to give a longer sentence within the statutory maximum for the offence.
The Government also continues to work closely with retail businesses, security representatives, trade associations and policing through the National Retail Crime Steering Group (NRCSG) to ensure the response to retail crime is as robust as it can be.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals on a new standalone criminal offence to protect retail workers from violence and abuse.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
The Government is clear that violent and abusive behaviour towards any public-facing worker is never acceptable. We take this issue very seriously and recognise the implications on businesses as well as the victims.
The Government took a significant step and legislated to introduce a statutory aggravating factor for assault against any public facing worker via section 156 of the Police Crime Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. This ensures the public facing nature of a victim’s role will be considered an aggravating factor when it comes to sentencing for assault offences.
We keep all legislation under review. Under section 176 of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, the shoplifting of goods of a value of £200 or less is a summary offence unless the defendant, if an adult, elects to be tried in the Crown Court. Where a summary offence is committed, the case can be handled as a police-led prosecution. There is a misconception this is used as a threshold by police forces, so that if the value of goods stolen is under £200, police will not respond. No police force has such a policy and this summary offence for shoplifting does not prevent police taking action against shoplifters.
The Government has recently made significant steps to improve the police response to retail crime. In October, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) published the Retail Crime Action Plan. Through this Plan, all police forces in England and Wales have committed to prioritise police attendance at the scene where violence has been used towards shop staff, where an offender has been detained by store security, and where evidence needs to be secured and can only be done by police personnel. Additionally, where CCTV or other digital images are secured, police will run this through the Police National Database to further aid efforts to identify prolific offenders or potentially dangerous individuals. This builds on the commitment made by the NPCC in August 2023 that all police forces across England and Wales will follow up all crimes where there is actionable evidence and the chance of identifying an offender, including shoplifting.
Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) are a valued part of the police workforce, as a key liaison point to help resolve local issues and foster good community relations.
Decisions around recruitment and retention of PCSOs and the powers and duties they have are for Chief Constables and Police and Crime Commissioners.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions he has held with representatives of retail sector employees on the adequacy of measures to tackle physical assaults in the workplace.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
I regularly co-chair, with the British Retail Consortium, the National Retail Crime Steering Group which brings together Government, trade organisations, representatives of the retail sector and enforcement partners to ensure the response to crimes affecting the retail sector is a partnership approach and as robust as it can be.
I have also recently been convening additional meetings with retailers and police, to discuss how we can tackle the issue of retail crime, including assaults.
As part of a roundtable with policing and retailers, on 23 October, the National Police Chiefs’ Council launched their Retail Crime Action Plan, which includes a police commitment to prioritise attending the scene of retail crime instances where violence has been used; where an offender has been detained; or where evidence needs to be promptly secured and can only be done in person by police personnel.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address abuse faced by retail employees and ensure their safety and wellbeing.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Shadow Minister (Business and Trade)
On 23 October, the National Police Chiefs Council launched their Retail Crime Action Plan; which includes a police commitment to prioritise attending the scene of retail crime instances where violence has been used; where an offender has been detained; or where evidence needs to be promptly secured and can only be done in person by police personnel.
The Government also took a significant step and legislated to introduce a statutory aggravating factor for assault against any public facing worker via section 156 of the Police Crime Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. This ensures the public facing nature of a victim’s role will be considered an aggravating factor when it comes to sentencing for assault offences.
The National Retail Crime Steering Group has published practical resources (https://brc.org.uk/nrcsg-against-shop-worker-abuse-and-violence) to assist with the reporting of crime, employee safety, and guidance on how to effectively share information with the police, including how to make use of Victim Impact Statements to ensure the full impact of a crime can be considered by the court.
Asked by: Martin Vickers (Conservative - Brigg and Immingham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to tackle retail crime and violence against shop workers.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
Violent and abusive behaviour towards any worker, particularly those who provide a valuable service to the public, is never acceptable. We have taken significant steps to tackle retail crime, including publication of the police-led Retail Crime Action plan which details clear police response commitments and guidance for retailers.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will hold discussion with the Sentencing Council on the potential merits of making it more likely that perpetrators of retail crime receive custodial sentences.
Answered by Gareth Bacon - Shadow Minister (Housing and Planning)
The independent Sentencing Council for England and Wales has a statutory duty to develop sentencing guidelines and monitor their use. These guidelines provide the Court with guidance on factors that should be considered, which may affect the sentence given. They set out different levels of sentence based on the harm caused and how blameworthy the offender is.
As an independent body, the Sentencing Council decides on its own priorities and work plan for producing and reviewing guidelines. Therefore, the Government cannot require the Council to review particular guidelines. It is open of course to individuals to approach the Council to ask that they do so, and I would encourage you to share your concerns with them. The Council’s published criteria for developing or revising guidelines is available on its website at: https://www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk/sentencing-and-the-council/about-the-sentencing-council/our-criteria-for-developing-or-revising-guidelines/.
The Ministry of Justice regularly monitors the effectiveness of the sentencing framework.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to reduce abuse targeted at retail staff relating to shoplifting.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
The Government is clear that violent and abusive behaviour towards any public-facing worker is never acceptable. We take this issue very seriously and recognise the implications these incidents can have on businesses as well as the victims.
Police forces across England and Wales have recently committed to pursuing any available evidence where there is a reasonable chance it could lead to catching a perpetrator and solving a crime. For shoplifting and assaults in retail, this could include reviewing CCTV evidence and using the Police National Database for facial searches to identify suspects.
On 23 October, the National Police Chiefs Council launched their Retail Crime Action Plan; which includes a police commitment to prioritise attending the scene of retail crime instances where violence has been used; where an offender has been detained; or where evidence needs to be promptly secured and can only be done in person by police personnel.
The Government took a significant step and legislated to introduce a statutory aggravating factor for assault against any public facing worker via section 156 of the Police Crime Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. This ensures the public facing nature of a victim’s role will be considered an aggravating factor when it comes to sentencing for assault offences.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to tackle verbal and physical abuse against shop workers.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
Retail crime, including shoplifting and violence and abuse, is not acceptable and the Government takes this issue very seriously. I expect police to take a zero-tolerance approach to it.
Police forces across England and Wales have recently committed to pursuing any available evidence where there is a reasonable chance it could lead to catching a perpetrator and solving a crime. For retail crime this could include reviewing CCTV evidence and using the Police National Database for facial searches to identify suspects where appropriate to do so.
The Home Office works closely with retailers and trade organisations, including the British Retail Consortium, Association of Convenience Stores and USDAW, and police partners via the National Retail Crime Steering Group (NRCSG) to understand the trends in crime affecting retailers and to ensure a robust response. In recent weeks, I have met senior policing leads and retail sector representatives to discuss the recent increase in shoplifting and what we can do together to tackle it.
The Government legislated to introduce a statutory aggravating factor for assault against any public facing worker via section 156 of the Police Crime Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. This ensures the courts treat the public-facing nature of a victim’s role as an aggravating factor when considering the sentence for an offence.
This week is Safer Business Action Week, where the National Business Crime Centre, police and partners across the country are joining together to tackle business crime in their communities, which has my full support. The week of action will involve Business Reductions Partnerships (BCRPs), Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) and the private security industry working with local police forces to deliver a focused operation with joint patrols, the targeted intervention of offenders and a range of crime prevention activity including raising awareness with the public. This week also promotes the ShopKind campaign, which signals to everybody how important this issue is and reminds customers to consider their behaviour towards shop staff.
This Government has also given the police more resources to deal with crimes, including retail crime, and, thanks to our successful uplift programme through which we recruited over 20,000 additional officers, we now have a record number of officers across forces in England and Wales.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the causes of increased levels of retail crime.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
Retail crime, including shoplifting and violence and abuse, is not acceptable and the Government takes this issue very seriously. I expect police to take a zero-tolerance approach to it.
Police forces across England and Wales have recently committed to pursuing any available evidence where there is a reasonable chance it could lead to catching a perpetrator and solving a crime. For retail crime this could include reviewing CCTV evidence and using the Police National Database for facial searches to identify suspects where appropriate to do so.
The Home Office works closely with retailers and trade organisations, including the British Retail Consortium, Association of Convenience Stores and USDAW, and police partners via the National Retail Crime Steering Group (NRCSG) to understand the trends in crime affecting retailers and to ensure a robust response. In recent weeks, I have met senior policing leads and retail sector representatives to discuss the recent increase in shoplifting and what we can do together to tackle it.
The Government legislated to introduce a statutory aggravating factor for assault against any public facing worker via section 156 of the Police Crime Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. This ensures the courts treat the public-facing nature of a victim’s role as an aggravating factor when considering the sentence for an offence.
This week is Safer Business Action Week, where the National Business Crime Centre, police and partners across the country are joining together to tackle business crime in their communities, which has my full support. The week of action will involve Business Reductions Partnerships (BCRPs), Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) and the private security industry working with local police forces to deliver a focused operation with joint patrols, the targeted intervention of offenders and a range of crime prevention activity including raising awareness with the public. This week also promotes the ShopKind campaign, which signals to everybody how important this issue is and reminds customers to consider their behaviour towards shop staff.
This Government has also given the police more resources to deal with crimes, including retail crime, and, thanks to our successful uplift programme through which we recruited over 20,000 additional officers, we now have a record number of officers across forces in England and Wales.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many attacks on shop workers have taken place in each year since 2010.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
The Home Office collects and publishes data on assaults or threats on the staff of wholesale and retail premises in England and Wales as part of the Commercial Victimisation Survey (CVS). The data was most recently published in May 2023 and is available at:
The CVS provides information on the proportion of premises which experienced assaults on their staff and an estimation of how frequently premises experienced these incidents. It does not provide information on the number of incidents of assaults on retail workers.