My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Dholakia, for tabling his amendment and for explaining it in considerable detail.
I start by expressing my support and respect for all those who work in the retail sector. Shops are the lifeblood of our communities and neighbourhoods. As the noble Lord pointed out, that fact was perhaps amplified by the pandemic. It is important that businesses should be free to trade without fear of crime or disorder. I recognise the significant impact that shoplifting can have, not only on businesses but on the wider community and consumers. It is vital that perpetrators are brought to justice. As the noble Lord, Lord Dholakia, pointed out, it is not a victimless crime.
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Section 176 of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 inserted Section 22A of the Magistrates’ Courts Act 1980. This provides that shoplifting, where the value of good stolen is less than £200, is a summary only offence. However, the provision preserves the right of adult defendants to elect to be tried by jury in the Crown Court, and this offence can be prosecuted by the police. The aim of Section 176 was to improve efficiency, as the noble Lord, Lord Ponsonby, has noted—perhaps he is not seeing these people because the system is operating more efficiently; I do not know the answer, but it is a possibility. The provision was intended to improve the efficiency of the criminal
justice system by allowing for a simpler, more proportionate, police-led process in high-volume, low-level, uncontested cases, so as to ensure that such cases were dealt with as swiftly and efficiently as possible. It is in retailers’ interests for cases to be brought to a quick conclusion.
I understand that there is a perception among retailers that the introduction of Section 176 led police forces to treat £200 as a threshold for prioritising their response to shop theft. The perception is that the police do not respond to or investigate shop theft where the goods stolen are below that value. Let me be clear: that was not the intention of the provision.
In 2019, the Government ran a call for evidence on the issue of violence and abuse against shop staff to better understand the problems faced by retail workers and the measures which may help prevent these crimes. The Government’s response to that call for evidence was published in July last year. Some respondents raised concerns about the changes introduced by Section 176, stating that it was their impression that such crimes would no longer be investigated by the police. They considered this to be a contributory factor behind increased brazenness among offenders.
I should note at this point that, at a later stage of the Bill, we are due to debate a couple of amendments—one put forward by the noble Lord, Lord Coaker, and one by my noble friend Lady Neville-Rolfe—on the subject of offences against retail workers.
Let me be clear: shoplifting offences involving the theft of goods up to £200 can and should be pursued by the police as a criminal offence. Section 176 has no bearing on the ability of the Crown Prosecution Service to prosecute a person for theft from a shop or on the courts’ powers to punish offenders. The Government highlighted this in their response to the call for evidence in July 2020. In September 2020, the Minister for Crime and Policing reiterated the message in a letter to police and crime commissioners and chief constables, to ensure that the intention of Section 176 of the 2014 Act was understood. The Minister stated:
“Section 176 of the 2014 Act does not constrain the ability of the police to arrest or prosecute someone in the way they feel is most appropriate.”
I would like to highlight the programme of work under way by the National Retail Crime Steering Group, which the Minister for Crime and Policing co-chairs with the British Retail Consortium—specifically Tom Ironside, who is the director of business and regulation. The steering group brings together the Government, retailers, trades unions and trade associations, the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, and the police-led National Business Crime Centre to help ensure that the response to retail crime, including shoplifting, is as robust as it can be. Through the steering group, six task and finish groups were created. They have published free to use, downloadable resources for retailers and employees, including information to assist with reporting these crimes and guidance on how to effectively share the information effectively with other businesses and the police, so that crimes can be investigated and appropriate action taken against offenders.
As part of that work, the National Business Crime Centre undertook a survey of police forces, asking about the reporting of retail crime. The survey specifically asked whether forces had a policy where the monetary value of shop theft determined whether the crime was investigated. Thirty-four out of 43 forces responded. I emphasise that the survey found that no forces used a £200 threshold for making decisions about responding to shoplifting offences. One force stated that it used a monetary value alongside other factors, such as the shoplifter being an identified offender or the use of violence.
There is nothing to suggest that repealing Section 176 would assist police in responding to shop theft. Particularly when it is committed by prolific offenders, shop theft is most effectively tackled when retailers and local policing teams work together—for example, through business crime reduction partnerships and other initiatives—to share information about crime.
I hope I have reassured the noble Lord to some extent that Section 176 of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 does not prevent these low-level shoplifting offences being investigated by police and the perpetrator being brought to justice. On this basis, I ask the noble Lord to withdraw his amendment.