DAILY MAIL COMMENT: Come down hard on these TikTok looters
Oxford Street is one of the busiest shopping areas in Europe. Until recently, it was also among the most renowned.
Situated between swanky Mayfair and bustling Soho, this famous throughfare was once the vibrant, beating heart of London’s retail sector. How times change.
Traditional shops are closing from Marble Arch to Oxford Circus, to be replaced by pop-up candy stores, vape shops and vendors of souvenir tat. Rough sleepers use the doorways as a dormitory.
To compound the sense of decline, a TikTok-inspired mob, some in their ‘uniform’ of balaclavas and gloves, descended on Oxford Street on Wednesday intent on mass thievery.
To be fair, the police seem to have been reasonably well-prepared, intercepting the ringleaders and averting what could have been a much more serious rampage.
The police and courts must come down hard on the would-be looters, discouraging others from running riot in future (Pictured: A man is detained on Oxford Street on Wednesday)
A TikTok-inspired mob, some in their ‘uniform’ of balaclavas and gloves, descended on Oxford Street on Wednesday intent on mass thievery
But there could be more such organised raids, inflicting yet more reputational damage. The lack of choice, general shabbiness ending VAT-free shopping for tourists have already put off foreign visitors, while London mayor Sadiq Khan’s war on motorists has deterred casual trade.
Why, for example, must they pay congestion charge at weekends, when there is little or no congestion. It is little more than a racket.
Many retailers have been pushed out by punishingly high rent and rates, and the shift towards online shopping has dented in the profits for all.
There are signs of a fight-back, with a branch of Ikea, the headquarters of a major pharmaceutical company and several luxury hotels in the offing and a fresh determination to crack down on the pop-up stores, which tend to disappear before paying their rates.
But central and local government must also do their share. Waiving the weekend congestion charge, easing the rates burden, and scrapping the self-defeating ‘tourist tax’ would be a good start.
Meanwhile, the police and courts must come down hard on the would-be looters, discouraging others from running riot in future. If security can’t be guaranteed, shoppers will simply go elsewhere.
Without urgent help and support, the commercial epicentre of London’s West End will continue to decay. And a global tourist attraction will be lost.
Put patients first
Despite the Government injecting extra billions into the NHS specifically to reduce the massive backlog of patients awaiting hospital treatment, it is still increasing.
Last December there were 7.2million on the waiting list. Today it’s 7.6million – a rise of 400,000 in less than eight months. A large part of the reason is the series of spiteful strikes by junior doctors and consultants.
In pursuit of utterly unaffordable pay rises, their action has caused 800,000 appointments or procedures to be postponed. It is simply inexcusable.
In the Mail today, Health Secretary Steve Barclay urges them to think again. The British Medical Association claims they are striking to ‘save the NHS’. This is poppycock. They are striking for hard cash, and their patients are suffering as a result.
(File Photo) Despite the Government injecting extra billions into the NHS specifically to reduce the massive backlog of patients awaiting hospital treatment, it is still increasing
Junior doctors have been offered up to 10.3 per cent, taking their average pay while in training to £47,600. For consultants the increase is six per cent, bringing average earnings up to £134,000.
Given their lavish pension payments and ability to boost their income with private work, most would see the offer as more than fair. And as Mr Barclay writes, it is final.
Nurses, midwives and other hospital staff have accepted 5 per cent plus a cash top-up and returned to work. By holding out for more and making patients bear the brunt, the BMA looks not just greedy but also callous. Neither is a good look for members of a caring profession.
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