Fines 'have increased rate of shoplifting'
Fines have been brought in to lower prison levels
Saturday, 19, May 2007 03:09
Fixed penalty fines have contributed to an increase in the number of shoplifting offences, according to one retail group.
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has said that £80 fixed penalty notices instead of arrests for shoplifting goods worth less than £200 have worsened retail crime.
Richard Dodd, from the BRC, said that the current level of sentencing isn't sufficient to discourage persistent shoplifters.
"Too many retailers feel police don't take retail crime seriously - it is way, way down on their list of priorities," he said.
"At government level sentencing is so weak that people are just not put off stealing from shops.
"A lot of these are people who are repeatedly stealing in order to fund a drug habit and they believe, unfortunately rightly, that there will be no serious sanction on them if they are caught."
The Ministry of Justice said jail sentences are used to punish shoplifters, with terms of up to seven years in prison.
But with prison levels currently reaching record highs, Lord Falconer, the new minister for justice, said that more community sentencing and other alternatives to prisons are required for more non-violent and minor offences.
According to the BRC, shoplifting cost the British economy £2 billion last year.