Police should investigate all instances of shoplifting even if the value of stolen goods is than £200, policing minister claims

• Chris Philp called on forces to look into every crime where CCTV is available  

Police should have a zero tolerance approach to shoplifting and investigate all instances, even if the value of stolen goods is less than £200, the policing minister has said.

Chris Philp said shoplifting is affecting businesses large and small up and down the country – often at the expense of violence or threats to retail workers.

He called on all forces to look into every crime whenever there is CCTV footage available.

The minister told the Daily Telegraph: ‘It should not be tolerated at any level – I expect a zero tolerance approach to this criminality.’

‘The law says that this is still a criminal offence and police should be enforcing it comprehensively.’

Police should have a zero tolerance approach to shoplifting and investigate all instances, policing minister Chris Philp has said. Pictured: Officers on Oxford Street 

It comes as leading retail bosses called for a crackdown on aggressive shoplifters and abusive customers. Pictured: Police officers detaining a young man on Oxford Street following a mass shoplifting event

Mr Philp also said he would encourage security staff to intervene if they spot shoplifters.

READ MORE: Gails boss calls for crackdown on ‘scary phenomenon’ of widespread shoplifting and aggressive customers after Tesco gives body cameras to staff to deter assaults

He went on to warn that British cities could end up like San Francisco which has faced a surge in shoplifting and drug related crimes in recent months, forcing businesses to close or lock sections of their stores with chains.

The clampdown comes just days after the Mail on Sunday revealed that every frontline Tesco store worker is to be offered a body camera following a shocking increase in violent attacks on staff.

More than 200 of the supermarket’s employees are victims of serious physical assaults each month amid an epidemic of anti-social behaviour blighting Britain’s high streets.

Tesco boss Ken Murphy described the impact on his staff as heartbreaking, calling the assaults ‘an insult to shoppers and retail workers’.

He added: ‘It should not have to be like this. Crime is a scourge on society and an insult to shoppers and retail workers.’

Meanwhile Gail’s Bakery chief Luke Johnson today joined calls urging police and prosecutors to start taking shoplifting seriously following the surge in attacks.

The policing minister called on all forces to look into every crime whenever there is CCTV footage available. Pictured: Officers detaining a man on Oxford Street following a mass shoplifting event 

A reported altercation at a Tesco in Aston, Birmingham in January 2022 saw a Tesco worker punched in the face as security staff grappled with alleged shoplifters

Tesco chief executive Ken Murphy says tougher laws are needed to deter people from attacking supermarket workers

Every frontline Tesco colleague will be given the option of a body-worn camera (file picture)

Tesco says attacks on its staff have risen by a third in the last year

Mr Johnson, who was previously chairman of Pizza Express, said prosecutions were the only way to tackle the problem.

He said: ‘This trend towards widespread, really widespread aggression, abuse and shoplifting is a new and scary phenomenon.

‘And I do think actually this is where we need to treat shoplifting as shop theft and see it as a proper crime and prosecute it.

‘And I think if the authorities were more active in that, then I think that would make a difference because I think it would discourage this sort of anti-social behaviour.’

Thefts across the sector have doubled in the last six years, costing stores more than £950 million in 2022. And the British Retail Consortium says police rarely turn up when incidents are reported.

Other major retailers, including the Co-op and Waitrose, are already offering body-worn cameras to frontline staff.

Matt Hood, Co-Op food boss said: ‘Retail crime is an ongoing challenge, and we know it is driven by repeat and prolific offenders and organised local criminal gangs.

‘I have seen some horrific incidents of brazen and violent theft in our stores, where my store colleagues feel scared and threatened.

Gail’s Bakery chief Luke Johnson urged police and prosecutors to start taking shoplifting seriously following a surge in attacks on retail staff

The introduction of body-worn cameras in Tesco stores comes after similar moves in Co-op and Waitrose stores, in response to rising levels of violence against staff 

‘Too often, police forces fail to respond to desperate calls by our store teams, and criminals are operating without any fear of consequences.’

Meanwhile, head of security at John Lewis Partnership Nicki Juniper added: ‘We’ve seen a rise in aggression. It’s completely unacceptable; nobody should be treated like that at work.’

Paddy Lillis, of the shop workers’ union Usdaw, welcomed Mr Murphy’s intervention but said any staff wearing cameras must be instructed.

He said: ‘Our annual survey found that three-quarters of retail workers suffered abuse from customers, with far too many experiencing threats and violence.

READ HERE: Tesco workers to be offered BODY CAMERAS following shocking increase in number of violent attacks on employees as more than 200 staff fall victim to physical assaults every month

‘Staff wearing cameras need to be properly trained and the public must be fully aware they are in use, to act as a deterrent.’

Last month, Home Secretary Suella Braverman demanded police pursue all reasonable crime leads. She implored officers to act on leads for phone or car theft, shoplifting and criminal damage.

She said no crime was ‘minor’ and said it was ‘unacceptable’ for some incidents to be treated as ‘less important’.

But law enforcement chiefs said they did not have the resources to pursue ‘minor’ incidents.

Attacks on shop workers rose sharply during the Covid pandemic when some customers vented their frustration on employees, and the problem has worsened since then.

A recent survey found episodes of violence and abuse against retail workers increased from 450 a day in 2019 to more than 850 a day last year.

Staff report being sworn at, subjected to racial or sexual insults, physically threatened, spat on and subjected to physical violence.

The Co-op logged almost 1,000 incidents a day of retail crime in the six months to June, an increase of 35 per cent on the same period in 2022 and its highest ever levels.

It lodged a Freedom of Information request which revealed police do not respond to around 70 per cent of serious retail crime. The company says criminals are ransacking shops with impunity, with one London store looted three times in a single day.

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