Shoplifting crimes in Bedfordshire reach record high

It comes as major retailers raised concerns about the rising cost of theft, while the Government has vowed to make assaulting a shopworker a specific criminal offence.

Figures from the Home Office show there were 4,314 shoplifting crimes recorded by Bedfordshire Police in the year to March – a 19 per cent increase from 3,615 the year before. It was also the highest figure since records began in 2003.

It follows the overall trend for England and Wales, as a total of 443,995 offences were logged by forces in the year to March 2024, up 30% on the 342,428 recorded in the previous 12 months. The figure is the highest since current records began, according to the Office for National Statistics, which described the latest increase as notable.

In the recent King's speech, the Government unveiled plans to amend the Crime and Policing Bill, adding legislation to address retail crime by creating a new specific offence of assaulting a shop worker and introducing stronger measures to "tackle low-level shoplifting".

The amendments also include reversing the previous £200 theft threshold, which allows anyone stealing goods costing less than £200 to plead guilty by post. The previous government intended to bring forward the same changes, but it was abandoned when parliament was dissolved.

The British Independent Retailers Association expressed support for these initiatives saying: "For too long, our members have faced increased incidents of theft, greater volumes of stolen products, and rising abuse towards business owners and staff."

Bedfordshire’s Community Policing Superintendent Hob Hoque said: “We recognise the significant impact that retail crime has on both retailers and the wider community.

“Operation Belleville is our dedicated initiative to tackle retail crime by targeting the most prolific offenders and collaborating with retailers and partners to reduce offending.

“As a result of the operation, the number of solved crimes related to retail crime increased by almost 30 per cent last financial year compared to the previous period, and we have taken positive action against numerous offenders."

The number of robberies recorded in England and Wales rose to 81,019, up eight per cent from 75,012 in the previous 12 months.

Among the robberies, there was a 13 per cent increase in those involving a knife or sharp instrument, with 21,226 recorded by forces in 2023-24.

The national figures exclude Greater Manchester due to an IT issue in processing knife crime data.

In Bedfordshire, there were 555 robberies recorded, with 176 (32 per cent) involving a knife or sharp instrument.

Superintendent Hob Hoque added: “Just this week, a man in his 30s was charged with 35 theft from shop offences related to incidents that occurred between April and July in Bedford, and has been remanded into custody.

“Our community policing teams continue to work closely with retailers and encourage the prompt reporting of incidents, to help us build a comprehensive understanding of the issue and identify the most common offenders.

“By gaining better insight into these offenders and related issues, such as drug addiction, we continue to work alongside partners to address the root causes and reduce the longer-term impact they have on businesses and communities.”