John Lewis Partnership chair Sharon White is calling for a royal commission review into the UK’s struggling high streets as mass store closures and increases in crimes like shoplifting and antisocial behaviour continue to wreak havoc in town centres across the country.
Claiming that 6,000 shops had closed within the last five years, the retail boss urged leaders to help high streets return to the “welcoming places where people want to live, work and spend time.”
Writing for the Telegraph she said: “Too many towns and cities are shells of their former selves. Boarded-up shops left vacant, dwindling numbers of banks and post offices. And in their place seemingly endless rows of vaping and charity shops.”
Waitrose and John Lewis, the group’s two businesses, have felt the effects of the headwinds facing the industry too, being forced to close stores across the country.
White also pointed to the rise in shoplifting and antisocial behaviour in Britain’s highstreets, arguing that town centres could soon become a “looting ground for emboldened shoplifters and organised gangs”.
“We need a comprehensive plan to stop organised gangs. I want to see the Scottish legislation that makes the abuse of a retail worker an offence brought in UK-wide,” she added.
Royal commissions are formal public inquiries used to look into issues of the utmost importance and White believes this process would be vital in addressing areas such as planning, taxation, crime, environmental policy, housing and transport.