Retail Crime

Jack Abbott, the Labour/Co-op MP for Ipswich, asked the Government what steps it is taking to tackle retail crime. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, Seema Malhotra, responded that levels of violence and abuse towards retail workers are unacceptably high, with a shoplifting epidemic plaguing high streets across the country. She stated that the Government will introduce a new offence of assaulting a retail worker and end the effective immunity for shoplifting of goods below £200, sending a message that all shoplifting is illegal and offenders will not escape punishment. In a follow-up, Mr. Abbott welcomed the Government's commitments and asked the Minister to join him in Ipswich to meet local retail staff and hear about their experiences, noting that these steps will make a vital difference. The Minister acknowledged the work of various organizations in this area and confirmed that the Minister of State, Home Department, Dame Diana Johnson, will be happy to visit Ipswich with Mr. Abbott. Matt Vickers, the Conservative MP for Stockton West and chair of the all-party parliamentary group on retail, then intervened. He noted that as a Back Bencher, he had campaigned alongside retailers and unions to increase protection for retail workers, and that his party's retail crime action plan, particularly the use of tagging and facial recognition technology, had been welcomed by retail workers. He asked the Minister to assure the House that there will be no let-up in the use of these technologies to clamp down on retail crime. The Minister acknowledged the shadow Minister's question and confirmed that the Government is continuing to look at this issue, welcoming the operational commitments made by the police in the retail crime action plan.