Two members of the staff have been assaulted during a robbery at a Bristol convenience store.
The suspect forced his way into the store on Clare Street as it was being opened and stole bottles of alcohol worth about £80.
In the course of the robbery, he assaulted two staff members. One employee was scratched, and another was inappropriately touched. The police are treating the case as one involving sexual assault, physical assault, and theft.
Avon and Somerset Police have on Thursday released a photo of a man as part of the investigation into the incident that occurred on 14 March, urging anyone who recognises him or has information that could aid the investigation to come forward
The man is described as being between 20 and 30 years old, approximately 5ft 9ins tall, slim, white, with dark facial hair, and wearing black clothing.
Those with relevant information are asked to contact the police by calling 101 and referencing the number 5224065658 or by completing the online appeals form.
Additionally, information can be provided anonymously through the independent charity Crimestoppers by calling 0800 555 111 or using their Anonymous Online Form. Crimestoppers guarantees complete anonymity, ensuring that no personal details are taken, and the information cannot be traced or recorded. Informants will not have to speak to the police or appear in court.
Independent retailers have weathered one of their most challenging years in 2024, with multiple headwinds affecting the sector, according to the British Independent Retailers Association (Bira).
With pressures mounting throughout the year, independent retailers have faced an increasingly difficult trading environment marked by changing consumer behaviour and economic uncertainties.
"2024 has presented unprecedented challenges for independent retailers,” said Andrew Goodacre, CEO of Bira. “Consumer spending on non-food items has declined significantly, while persistent footfall problems and fragile consumer confidence have impacted high streets nationwide. Despite inflation coming under control, interest rates are falling slowly, affecting both business and consumer spending."
"The retail landscape has become increasingly competitive, with large chains implementing deeper and longer discount periods. The rise of ultra-fast fashion retailers like Shein and Temu has created additional pressure on margins, whilst deflation on non-food items has further squeezed profits," he added.
The sector has also grappled with retail crime, with Bira's latest survey showing 78.79 per cent of businesses reporting increased frequency or severity of theft incidents.
Research from PwC earlier this year also highlighted the scale of the challenge, with 6,945 outlets shutting – equating to 38 store closures per day, up from 36 per day in 2023. The figure outnumbered the rate of new store openings, which rose modestly to 4,661, averaging 25 openings each day.
Mr Goodacre said: "The key difficulties independent retailers are grappling with include low consumer demand, as consumer confidence remains fragile and shoppers are highly value-focused. Independent shops struggle to compete on price as large chains are able to discount more deeply and for longer periods."
Looking ahead to 2025, retailers face new challenges. He added: "Medium-sized retailers will see a significant increase in employment costs, while thousands of smaller retailers will be hit with higher business rates as relief drops from 75per cent to 40 per cent."
However, Mr Goodacre said he sees reasons for optimism and added: "We expect 2025 to bring some positive changes. Wages are set to rise faster than inflation, which should boost consumer spending. Both inflation and interest rates should continue to fall, helping to rebuild consumer confidence."
"The circular economy presents a growing opportunity for independent retailers, and with economic growth set to improve, we anticipate better trading conditions. While challenges remain, independent retailers who stay adaptable and resilient will find opportunities in the year ahead."
Nestlé Waters is facing a potential halt to its production of the iconic Perrier mineral water in southern France due to health risks, French media reported.
A confidential report published by French newspaper Le Monde and Radio France revealed that health authorities are recommending a production stoppage due to concerns over the sanitary quality of the water source.
Le Monde said the sparkling water brand, obtained at its source in Vergèze in the Gard prefecture, is under threat of losing its natural mineral water label, noting that “a confidential report from the Occitanie regional health agency leaves little room for any other outcome” and that the “blow could be fatal for Perrier”.
The report, citing an inspection conducted at the Perrier bottling plant in Vergèze, highlights the “regularly degraded sanitary quality” of the water catchment areas. Specifically, the report points to a “virological risk” associated with the water source.
In response to the findings, the regional health agency (ARS) has “invited” Nestlé Waters to “strategically consider another possible food use for the current mineral water catchments,” contingent upon the provision of “additional health safety guarantees.”
Nestlé Waters has not yet issued a formal statement regarding the potential production stoppage. However, the company has previously acknowledged contamination issues at the Vergèze site. In April this year, authorities ordered the destruction of millions of Perrier bottles due to “fecal” contamination detected in one of the water sources.
“Presented at the time by Nestlé and the prefecture as a one-off event linked to intense rainfall, this situation was in fact the consequence of a general deterioration in the quality of the groundwater exploited by Nestlé at Vergèze,” said Le Monde.
The future of the brand and its production site in Vergèze will be decided by the Gard prefecture, which must rule on Nestlé’s application in October 2023 to renew the operating permit for the ‘Perrier spring’. The prefecture told the paper that the decision could be made in the “first half of 2025” after receipt of an “opinion by approved public health hydrogeologists”, in addition to the ARS report.
Earlier in September, Nestlé Waters has agreed to pay €2 million (£1.7m) to close French probes over illegal wells and treatment of mineral water.
The deal ends preliminary probes into the use of wells without authorisation and fraud for filtering its mineral waters - a practice that is illegal in France where mineral waters are supposed to be natural.
The Swiss group will in addition spend €1.1m over two years on projects to restore the environment in several French towns where it operates.
Fed member and Northern district president Martin Ward recently took to the airwaves to slam the rise in shoplifting saying, “it is an everyday occurrence” and opening his doors on a morning fills him with dread.
On Tuesday morning, December 17, Mr Ward, who owns Cowpen Lane News, in Billingham, joined other concerned members of the public to discuss the damming effects of retail crime with Nicky Campbell on BBC Radio 5 Live.
Retail crime in its true nature has blighted retail over recent years and still there is very little being done. An increase of 28 per cent on 2023 reporting levels of shoplifting was reported by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) earlier this year.
Introduced to the show, Mr Ward advised how, for him, “It is an everyday occurrence unfortunately, now, you don’t know what you’re going to get when you open the doors every morning. It has definitely got a lot worse over the last five to ten years.”
Mr Campbell pressed Martin, asking how members of the public can help. “Should I shout or stop them?” he asked.
Martin replied: “Shouting at them is fine, as long as you are at a distance. The problem you’ve got is these people are dangerous, they don’t want to get stopped, they’ll do whatever they need to not get stopped.”
Martin then recounted when three shoplifters came into his store and, after narrowly missing them to challenge the assailants, he later learnt from the police that one of the criminals was known to carry a knife.
When discussing what actions members of the public could perform to stop this, Michael, a recently retired former police inspector who was also on the call, said that anyone who reports shoplifting, public or shopkeeper, needs to be clear.
He said: “You have got to report it every time. You may or may not get the response you hoped for. Sometimes we would listen to a 999 tape of a report that someone had a shoplifter in the store, and when we got there we would find out there was a violent robbery with a weapon.
“It is really important when ringing the police to actually mention what is happening. If there are weapons involved or violence threatened, please say that as there will be someone who decides which 999 calls get priority and the rule of thumb with those decisions is people become a bigger priority than property every single day.
“If the shoplifting is in progress and involves violence, it is a 999 call every time and you need to mention the violence and that it is ongoing, as that does affect the assessments and priority of the call.”
However, it was also discussed just why witnesses don’t want to get involved and simply let the criminals get away with it, as Martin also explained: “I understand why people do it, they don’t want to get involved, they don’t want to have to go to court and don’t want to make witness statements.
“What I have found with shoplifters is, if you are watching them, they don’t do it directly in front of you, so if everyone is watching it there might be less of it. But it does run the risk that they may just move on to somewhere else.”
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Signage is pictured outside an Aldi Local store on Kilburn High Road in London on January 2, 2023
Aldi Wednesday said it will invest around £650 million across Britain in 2025.
This includes the development of new stores in Fulham Broadway in London, Billericay in Essex, and Cheadle in Stoke-on-Trent, with the supermarket targeting around 30 new store openings in total in 2025.
This forms part of Aldi’s package of annual investment to accelerate its expansion across Britain’s towns and cities.
The rate of investment in 2025 continues from an equally busy new store opening programme in 2024 with Aldi opening in new locations such as Totton in Hampshire, Cribbs Causeway in Bristol and Pwllheli in Gwynedd in recent weeks.
“At Aldi, our unwavering commitment has always been to provide Britain with the best value groceries. The demand for our unbeatable prices is now at an all-time high, which gives us the confidence to continue investing in Britain to provide greater access to our award-winning products at the lowest prices,” Giles Hurley, chief executive, Aldi UK and Ireland, said.
“We recognise that there are still areas without an Aldi store, so our expansion plans for 2025 are designed to address some of these gaps as we work towards our long-term goal of 1,500 UK stores.”
In May, Aldi announced its second pay increase for Aldi store colleagues this year, paying a minimum hourly rate of £12.40 nationally and £13.65 within the M25.
The home secretary has on Wednesday announced a £1 billion funding boost for police across England and Wales to restore neighbourhood policing and make the streets safer.
Part of the government’s Plan for Change, this will take total funding up to £19.5bn for next year.
The majority of this funding – up to £17.4bn and an increase of up to £987 million compared to last year – will be given to police and crime commissioners, allowing them to tackle crime in their communities, rid town centres of antisocial behaviour and apprehend persistent offenders.
This equates to a cash increase of up to 6 per cent and a real terms increase of 3.5 per cent, the Home Office said.
This money will include:
£339 million more for the police core grant to help forces with general running costs and to be allocated by forces to tackle local priorities. This is significantly more than the £184 million rise announced last year.
all costs arising from changes to National Insurance Contributions (NICs), helping police to balance their budgets.
new funding of £100 million to kickstart the recruitment of 13,000 additional neighbourhood officers, community support officers and special constables, as announced by the Prime Minister earlier this month.
£65 million more for the National and International Capital City (NICC) grant for the London forces, to recognise this has not kept pace with inflation and rising demands of policing the capital
In addition to the money being given to police and crime commissioners, the Home Office is also investing an extra £140m for Counter Terrorism Policing, ensuring that they have the resources they need to deal with the threats we face and protect the public from serious harm.
“Today’s settlement provides a substantial increase in funding for policing to help deliver on this government’s Safer Streets mission. This vital funding boost will enable forces to kickstart the recruitment of neighbourhood police officers and crack down on the crimes blighting our high streets and town centres,” home secretary Yvette Cooper said.
The provisional funding settlement comes after the home secretary also announced a major package of police reform, including a new Police Performance Unit to track local performance and drive up standards, and a new National Centre of Policing to harness new technology and forensics.
Projects that sit within other national priorities are also being protected, including:
£612 million to help modernise police forces, enhancing their ability to share data, intelligence and evidence with each other and law enforcement partners. This funding will be essential in tackling the increasingly tech-savvy criminals who wreak havoc on people and businesses
£50 million for Violence Reduction Units, delivering on the government’s pledge to halve knife crime
£30 million to tackle the ongoing battle against serious organised crime through county lines routes
“We are determined to deliver for the people up and down this country and make good on our promise to reform policing, halve knife crime and tackle anti-social behaviour head on,” policing minister Dame Diana Johnson said.
“This settlement aims to do just that, providing a significant and substantial increase in funding that will allow polices forces to get a grip on criminality, to make our streets and communities safer.”