Shoplifting across England and Wales soared to over half a million offences in 2024, the highest levels since police record began, new figures from the Office for National Statistics reveal.
A total of 516,971 offences were logged by forces in 2024, up 20% from 429,873 in 2023.
Responding to the data, Policing Minister Diana Johnson was reported to have said that Labour “will not tolerate the criminality blighting our communities”.
The government’s decision to put almost 3,000 more police officers in neighbourhood roles this year would ensure that crimes “receive the attention they deserve,” she said.
“We are already starting to reverse the Tories’ decade of decline on charge rates. Today’s figures are yet more evidence of the damage done by destroying neighbourhood policing as the Tories did over 14 years,” Johnson added.
James Lowman CEO of Association of Convenience Stores said the volume of theft is still “massively under-reported”.
“Our own member survey [ACS Crime Report 2025] revealed 6.2 million thefts recorded by convenience stores alone.
“It is encouraging that more theft is being reported, even if it is still only the tip of the iceberg. Unless theft is reported, we cannot identify the repeat offenders who are responsible for so much of this crime,” he said.
Mentioning the Crime and Policing Bill and the Retail Crime Action Plan, Lowman said it’s time that these plans were implemented across the country to support retailers and their colleagues.
As well as the trade response, retailers have also had their say on the figures. The Federation of Independent Retailers (FED) has repeated calls for government grants to boost security measures for smaller stores.
In a recent survey of its members, the Fed found 72% of those who responded had experienced shoplifting, break-ins and damage to property, while they and their staff had been physically or verbally threatened.
National President, Mo Razzaq, said: “The numbers are shocking but come as no surprise to independent retailers, as we face these incidents on a daily basis. In realty, this is just the tip of the iceberg, as many incidents go unreported due to lack of confidence in the police and the justice system to take appropriate action to tackle this growing problem.
“We hope the latest disturbing statistics on shoplifting encourage the Government to provide the financial help that is urgently needed to tackle the surge in retail crime.”
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