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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
National
Joanna Partridge

Shoplifting offences in England and Wales at highest level ever recorded

BRC British Retail Consortium Office for National Statistics Usdaw Which
Shoplifter putting drink in jacket
A survey by the British Retail Consortium calculated that shoplifting costs retailers more than £2.2bn a year. Photograph: Roman Mykhalchuk/Getty Images

The number of shoplifting offences recorded by police in England and Wales has risen to the highest level on record, according to official figures, surpassing half a million offences for the first time in 2024.

A total of 516,971 shoplifting offences were recorded last year, a 20% increase on the 429,873 in 2023, according to the Office for National Statistics.

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