gdvO0Nl6
type: Answer
type: WrittenAnswer
answer has question: vfS4e6ZR
answer has answering person: 4ZneyIwV
answer text: 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 48% compared to findings from the year ending March 2010. However, Police Recorded Crime figures show shoplifting offences increased by 37% in the 12 months to December 2023. Statistics also show the number of people charged with shoplifting offences has risen by 46% in the year ending December 2023, showing that police are taking action. We have recently taken significant steps nationally to improve the police response to retail crime, including shoplifting, and these are being implemented in all police forces across England and Wales. The Government’s plan – "Fighting retail crime: more action" was launched on 10 April, which highlights five areas of work this Government will drive forward to tackle retail crime: Introducing a standalone offence for assaults on retail workers; Additional electronic monitoring for prolific shoplifters; Working with police and businesses to roll out the latest facial recognition to catch these perpetrators; Championing good practice to design out crime; and Making it easier for retailers to report crime. We will bring forward legislative changes to introduce a presumption towards electronic monitoring as part of a sentence served in the community for those who repeatedly steal from shops. This legislative change will provide that on the third sentencing occasion, an offender would be electronically monitored as part of any community sentence or post-release for the duration of any licence period. The Government’s plan builds on the National Police Chiefs’ Council’s (NPCC) <a href="https://gbr01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fnews.npcc.police.uk%2Fresources%2Fe6e5n-gfsgg-qru39-qjnkc-dbait&data=05%7C02%7CRebecca.Khosla2%40homeoffice.gov.uk%7C2866bb4a3f554fdf3e4208dc014e95e9%7Cf24d93ecb2914192a08af182245945c2%7C0%7C0%7C638386684221640764%…
answer given date: 2024-05-17+01:00
answer has answering body: NDZSYjeE
written answer has answering body: NDZSYjeE