Desperate retailers call for action against thugs

HIGH street giants are calling for tougher laws to deter shoplifters from violently attacking workers.

- Jon Austin

A letter signed by 86 retail leaders was sent to Home Secretary Suella Braverman on Friday demanding action to reverse soaring crime rates.

It came as the sector reported a rise in armed organised gangs threatening staff and raiding stores.

Signatories included the chief executives of Tesco, Sainsbury's, Aldi, Primark and Matalan, as well as a string of other household names.

There were 867 incidents of violence and abuse of shop workers in 2021-22, nearly double the number two years earlier. A crime survey commissioned by the British Retail Consortium found shop theft costs £953million a year.