Retail Crime: Effects

Lord Razzall Excerpts

Thursday 5th December 2024 Lords Chamber

[Lord Razzall (LD)]

My Lords, there is clearly common ground on how important the issues are that the noble Lord, Lord Hannett of Everton, has raised, as demonstrated by a number of noble Lords’ speeches.

I think both the noble Lord, Lord Dubs, and my noble friend Lord Tope indicated the known figures, as reported to the relevant committee, which are that 443,995 incidents of shop theft—as I will call it—were reported in the year up to March 2024. That was up 30% on the previous year. Of course, as noble Lords have indicated, they are only incidents that were reported to the police. Other figures suggest that there may have been up to 17 million incidents not reported in the same period. Other noble Lords have indicated that there seems to have been a change in practice, with a lot of shop theft now by organised gangs rather than by individuals. Other noble Lords also said that there has been a significant increase in violence and abuse towards retail shop workers.

It is unusual to sum up on a debate in which everyone agrees. I do not think that anyone has said anything that I disagreed with, with the possible exception of one thing by the noble Baroness, Lady Neville-Rolfe. I did not entirely disagree with her, but she stands out as maybe saying something different. Everybody else has been completely unanimous in what they have said, so it is an unusual role to sum up today.

I therefore thought that I would pin down the Minister on the record and ask him to confirm the extent to which the Government accept the recommendations of the committee on which my noble friend Lord Tope and the noble Lord, Lord Dubs, have sat. The chair, my noble friend Lord Foster, unfortunately could not be here this evening. I would like the Government to confirm, if at all possible, whether they agree with the following major recommendations of that committee.

The first is to change the word “shoplifting” to “shop theft” in all circumstances, not just occasionally or where appropriate. Secondly, I think the Government have confirmed that they will create the offence of assaulting a retail worker, but perhaps the Minister can confirm the timing of that when he responds. Thirdly, do the Government support the repeal of Section 176 of the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act, which limited prosecution for theft under £200? If so, what is the timing of that? Fourthly, what are the Government’s proposals to improve treatment for people where there is drug and alcohol involvement? A number of noble Lords have indicated that this is a key factor in increases in shop theft and violence, so perhaps the Minister can confirm what plans the Government have to improve and invest in that area. Fifthly, do the Government agree on the need to improve reporting systems between retailers and the police, which was a key recommendation of the committee? Sixthly, do the Government agree to legislate to regulate the ethical use of new technologies, especially by private companies, for crime prevention, which again was a recommendation of the committee?

There may have been other recommendations by the relevant committee, but those seem to have been the key ones and from these Benches we urge their implementation. I will just float two other possibilities that have not been raised by any noble Lord. First, will the Government find a way to end two toxic practices that affect many retail workers? The first is being forced, typically in the run-up to Christmas, to break the law in order to meet delivery quotas. The second is people on zero-hours contracts receiving less than one week’s notice of their working hours. Are the Government prepared to look at that?

Secondly, and this may not command universal support among your Lordships, what do the Government think of the idea of a higher minimum wage for workers on zero-hours contracts as compensation for their irregular working hours, particularly in the retail sector? I am delighted to have wound up on this report, and I am delighted that we seem to have unanimity.