Cross-party think-tank the Social Market Foundation (SMF) has urged the Government to look at tougher prison sentences and Criminal Behaviour Orders (CBO) without the need for a conviction
Shop workers face growing violence with 2,000 attacks a day, 70 of which involve weapons, chilling analysis shows.
Ministers have been urged to consider longer prison terms and slapping criminal behaviour orders on prolific thieves without taking them to court. And court cases should be sped up so vicious gangs are not able to terrorise staff while their cases are being processed, an influential think-tank said.
The head of the British Retail Consortium (BRC) told The Mirror that retail crime is “spiralling out of control” – with harrowing cases seeing workers threatened with machetes. Grim analysis by the Social Market Foundation (SMF), shared with The Mirror, reveals physical and verbal assaults have shot up by 340% since 2020.
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Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, said: “Retail crime is spiralling out of control. People in retail have been spat on, racially abused, and threatened with machetes. Every day this continues, criminals are getting bolder and more aggressive. We owe it to the three million hardworking people working in retail to bring the epidemic of crime to heel.
“No one should go to work in fear. With little faith in police attendance, it is no wonder criminals feel they have licence to steal, threaten, assault and abuse.”
Labour has vowed to tackle the epidemic head-on since coming to power, with legislation working its way through Parliament creating a specific offence of assaulting a shop worker. It will also undo botched Tory legislation which means thefts worth less than £200 are less likely to result in prosecution – moves welcomed by industry chiefs.
But Richard Hyde, senior researcher at the SMF, questioned whether the Government’s plans go far enough. He warned that its impacts are “only likely to emerge over several years”. And he said retailers and the public “can legitimately be sceptical about its likely impact”.
He also suggested that ministers could make it easier for businesses to bring private prosecutions and civil actions against perpetrators. Mr Hyde suggested Criminal Behaviour Orders (CBOs) – which place restrictions on criminals – could be imposed without a criminal conviction.
He said they can be effected, but stated: “However, CBOs can only be imposed after a conviction, which, given the slow pace at which the criminal courts operate, means a perpetrator can commit a lot of retail theft before one is ever imposed.”
And Mr Hyde called for more consideration to “more substantial penalties for hyper-prolific offenders”, saying tougher sentences in the Netherlands had been found to have reduced offending by 25%
Mr Hyde also warned that the National Retail Crime Strategy Delivery Plan (RCSDP) “fails to address the illicit markets” where organised gangs sell stolen goods. He said: “This is despite the fact that these markets are central to the business models of the organised criminal gangs involved in acquisitive crime.”
A record 530,000 shoplifting cases were reported to police in England and Wales in the year ending March 2025. The Mirror’s Clamp Down on Shoplifting Campaign calls for tougher action to protect workers and businesses from violent gangs.
The Government has stepped up neighbourhood patrols over the summer and pledged to bulk up neighbourhood policing teams by 13,000 by 2029. And the Crime and Policing Bill will include a specific offence of assaulting a shop worker, which businesses have long called for.
Usdaw general secretary Joanne Thomas said: “No-one should feel afraid to go to work, but our evidence shows that too many retail workers are. It is shocking that over three-quarters of our members working in retail are being abused, threatened and assaulted for simply doing their job and serving the community.
“Two-thirds of respondents said that incidents of violence, threats and abuse they had experienced were triggered by theft or armed robbery.
“It is increasingly common for retail stores to be targeted by organised crime gangs stealing to order. This is in no way a victimless crime, with weapons and violence used to ensure these criminals are not stopped.”
Ms Thomas said: “It is our hope that these new measures will help give retail workers the respect they deserve.”
A Home Office spokeswoman said: “We understand the devastating impact of shop theft on retailers. We are restoring visible, responsive, neighbourhood policing – with over 500 town centres getting extra patrols this summer, and 3,000 more neighbourhood officers and PCSOs will be in place across the country by next spring.
“Our landmark Crime and Policing Bill will also bring in a specific offence for assaulting retail workers and end the effective immunity for shop theft of goods under £200. We are also working with the industry, and the police, to better share information which will allow officers to target offenders.
““We will look at the recommendations in this report and will continue to work with a range of experts to build on the steps taken so far.”
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