Police in the UK are “not interested” in shoplifting despite it rising to record levels, Marks and Spencer Group PLC (LSE:MKS) chair Archie Norman believes.
Norman said workers at M&S stores receive “very little help from the police” when it comes to shoplifting offences, forcing the company to implement additional preventative measures.
“We have store detectives, technology, camera systems ... we monitor all our stores, not least because if somebody is threatened we can intervene,” he explained on a radio interview with LBC.
“We get very little help from the police. I mean, I think we have to accept the police are not interested in this sort of crime anymore. Whether we like it or not, that’s the way it’s gone.”
Despite the lack of support from officials, Norman said shoplifting at M&S has started to fall – albeit from record high levels.
Last year, Co-op said it suffered 300,000 cases of shoplifting, abuse, violence and anti-social behaviour at its sites.
John Lewis boss Sharon White claimed the issue was an “epidemic”, leading the company and other large UK retailers to fund a police operation to tackle to rise in crime.
Companies have each provided £600,000 for the operation, which aims to use CCTV and facial recognition to tackle the crimes at a higher level.