Lee Anderson MP & Reform Councillor Slam Labour Government Following Rise in Shoplifting Incidents.

Is it any wonder that shoplifting remains so high in lawless Britain, where the priority is far too often placed on the criminal rather than their victims?

Lee Anderson MP & Cllr Rory Green with community protection officers at a Co-op in Annesley Woodhouse that has experienced a rise in shoplifting incidents.

On Friday I visited the Co-op store on Skegby Road in Annesley with County Councillor Rory Green, and with community protection officers to speak with the staff after the shop has had yet more shoplifting incidents.

These sorts of incidents are now commonplace at shops all around Ashfield and the rest of the country. There is still no deterrent to stop these people from committing these awful crimes. It is not good enough that this is still happening to people just for simply doing their jobs.

The most recent shoplifting statistics from the Office of National Statistics show a new record high 519,381 for the year ending September 2025, a rise of five per cent from the year before.

The first duty of the state is to protect its citizens, and it appears that Keir Starmer's Government is failing on this front at both home and abroad.

They have created an environment where offenders can keep getting away with petty crime, and they are emboldened by the fact that very little is done about it to stop them. And when the law eventually catches up with them, the courts simply give them a slap on the wrist, only further encouraging them to do it again. Amazingly, 10 per cent of criminals in the UK commit 50 per cent of all the crime.

Britain desperately needs a different approach to crime and justice. Victims must come first, not criminals. The law must protect those who obey it and punish those who break it. Law and order must be restored. That is what a Reform Government will do.

We will end the ridiculous £200 shoplifters' charter that treat shop theft under this value as a lesser offence leaving many cases uninvestigated. All shoplifters will face arrest. We will stop the revolving door for criminals who commit multiple offences, more crime will equal more time. Courts will be fast tracked, with 24/7 justice if necessary.

We will rapidly build prison capacity to ensure no violent criminals are released early due to overcrowding, and that judges hand criminals the sentences they deserve. Pop-up custody centres will be opened on high streets in crime hotspots to ensure swift and certain justice for offenders and get police out on the beat again.

A Reform Government will introduce a zero-tolerance policing policy. This means acting against every reported crime. Stop and search and mobile knife arches will be deployed to get deadly weapons off our streets and keep people safe. Targeted curfews will be introduced for under 18s in crime hotspots.

And to ensure that the law is enforced, a Reform Government will recruit 30,000 more police officers over a five year period.

Safe streets are the bedrock of a civilised society. Britain is lawless with Labour. Reform will make it safe.