In response to the BRC survey, Home Office Minister Dame Diana Johnson has called the rise in shop crime “utterly unacceptable”.

She has also repeated a government pledge to bring in a new specific offence for assaulting retail workers – something the retail industry has been calling for since 2020.

It would help clarify the size of the problem and allow statistics to be collected, says the BRC.

Helen Dickinson says the latest record levels of shoplifting should serve as a “wake-up call” to the government and the police.

“The fear of consequence is just not there and I think that’s why we need to see more resources and more focus by the police,” she says.

Jason Towse says there is more work to do but thinks that steps being taken across the industry are starting to bring about results.

“Ultimately when shoplifters start to see the levels of consequence more and more than we’re seeing today… that will really change the tide.”