Skip to content
Search
AI Powered
Latest Stories

Retailers association demands same law in UK as Scotland's new workers act

Retailers association demands same law in UK as Scotland's new workers act
Rearview shot of a young woman shopping at a grocery store
Getty Images/iStockphoto

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) is calling on the UK Government to implement the same legislation in England and Wales as enforced in Scotland from Tuesday (24) that will make assaulting or abusing retail staff a standalone offence.

Weeks ahead when Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill is scheduled to go to the Lords with its second reading, the BRC has called on peers to demand similar legislation in the UK and Wales.


Shopworkers in Scotland now will be better protected as the new Protection of Workers act has come into force.

Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, said: “Retail workers in Dundee are now better protected than those in Doncaster.

“It is incomprehensible that despite Holyrood’s decisive action, the UK Government has so far failed to provide the same protections to shop workers in the rest of the UK.

"Retail workers have done an incredible job supporting us throughout this pandemic; they should not have to go to work fearing for their safety. We have campaigned long and hard for retail workers to receive better protections through a standalone offence, and we will not stop until our asks are met,” she said.

As per BRC, retail violence has worsened in the last full year, despite retailers spending a record £1.2 billion on safety measures, including security staff, body cameras and panic alarms.

The latest figures by the BRC found that violence has escalated further during the pandemic as retail staff tried to implement mandatory Covid safety measures as compared to pre-pandemic times when the most common trigger for the violence was when staff used to ask customers for ID in the case of age-restricted items, BRC said.

Labour’s shadow Home Office minister Sarah Jones said: “The Conservatives have failed to take action to protect shop workers in England and Wales from a rising epidemic of attacks.

“Ministers must listen to workers on the front line who are saying loud and clear that abuse must not be part of the job.

“Labour has called for a new standalone offence with a 12-month prison sentence for abuse, threats, and violence against retail workers.”

More for you

A woman enters the Selfridges department store

A woman enters the Selfridges department store on December 13, 2024 in London, England

Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

Retail faces mixed fortunes in 2025 amid cost pressures, AI opportunities, and high street revival


The UK retail sector is bracing for a challenging but opportunity-filled 2025, according to Jacqui Baker, head of retail at RSM UK. While the industry grapples with rising costs and heightened crime, advancements in artificial intelligence and a revival of the high street offer potential pathways to growth, she said.

Keep ReadingShow less
unsafe soft drinks seized in Southend

Unsafe soft drinks seized in Southend

Photo: Southend-on-Sea City Council

1,100 unsafe soft drinks seized in Southend safety crackdown

Southend-on-Sea City Council officials have secured food condemnation orders from Chelmsford Magistrates Court, resulting in the seizure and destruction of 1,100 unauthorised soft drinks.

The condemned drinks, including Mountain Dew, 7-UP, Mirinda, and G Fuel energy drinks, were found during routine inspections of food businesses across Southend by the council’s environmental health officers.

Keep ReadingShow less
Charity Super.Mkt at Brent Cross Shopping centre in north London

A customer browses clothes inside Charity Super.Mkt at Brent Cross Shopping centre in north London on, December 17, 2024

Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images

Brits kindle Christmas spirit with second-hand gifts

Bursting with customers one afternoon the week before Christmas, a second-hand charity shop in London's Marylebone High Street looked even busier than the upscale retailers surrounding it.

One man grabbed two puzzle sets and a giant plush toy as a present for friends, another picked out a notebook for his wife.

Keep ReadingShow less
Nothing is more important than your Mental Elf

Nothing is more important than your Mental Elf

Lancashire Mind’s 11th Mental Elf fun run was its biggest and best yet – a sell-out event with more than 400 people running and walking in aid of the mental charity, plus dozens more volunteering to make the day a huge success.

The winter sun shone on Worden Park in Leyland as families gathered for either a 5K course, a 2K run, or a Challenge Yours’Elf distance which saw many people running 10K with the usual running gear replaced with jazzy elf leggings, tinsel and Christmas hats.

Keep ReadingShow less
A woman walks past a window display promoting an ongoing sale

A woman walks past a window display promoting an ongoing sale, on December 13, 2024 in London, England.

Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

Retail sales disappoint before Christmas

UK retail sales rose less than expected in the runup to Christmas, according to official data Friday that deals a fresh blow to government hopes of growing the economy.

Separate figures revealed a temporary reprieve for prime minister Keir Starmer, however, as public borrowing fell sharply in November.

Keep ReadingShow less