Scottish retailers demand 'emergency funding' for Police to tackle crime surge

The Scottish Grocers’ Federation has called for emergency resources for Police Scotland to combat retail crime, following figures published by the Scottish Government highlighting a staggering 25 per cent increase in shoplifting crimes this year.

The latest figures from the Chief Statistician for 2024, published this week, only account for the crimes reported to Police Scotland, but SGF say that the true figure is much higher.

With 77 per cent of members telling SGF they are either unlikely or very unlikely to report shoplifting incidents to the police. Due to the lack of confidence across retail that there will be a meaningful outcome.

SGF has called on the Scottish Government to take action before the situation gets even worse, by providing an uplift for Police Scotland and Scottish Justice in the Scottish Budget next week.

SGF Chief Exec, Dr Pete Cheema OBE, said, “We encourage our members to report every crime, but the truth is that many retailers simply don’t see any benefit. Shoplifting is a daily event in most stores and most know that the Police simply don’t have enough resources to cope.

“But even the Scottish Government’s own official figures speak for themselves, with shop theft set to double over a five-year period.

“It is communities, families and hard-working retailers and staff that are paying the price. The cost isn’t just financial, every week we hear about more cases of violence and abuse toward shop workers. But many criminals know that there won’t be any consequences whatsoever for their actions.

“That is why we need the Finance Secretary to send a clear message in the budget next week and provide emergency funding for the Police to get to grips with the devastating impact of retail crime. If the Scottish Government won’t act now, then when?”

The total number of abuse and assaults now logged under the Protection of Workers (Retail and Age-restricted Goods and Services) (Scotland) Act 2021 reached 13,857 cases up to August 2024. Showing the extent of violence and threatening behaviour that Scottish retailers and staff face every day.