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| Shoplifting up '70% since 2000' | Shoplifting up '70% since 2000' |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Shoplifting has risen 70% since the year 2000 despite billions spent on security, research suggests. | |
| Thieves steal an average of £149 worth of goods in each incident, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) 2006 Retail Crime Survey said. | Thieves steal an average of £149 worth of goods in each incident, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) 2006 Retail Crime Survey said. |
| It estimated that shop crime in the UK in 2005 cost a total of £2.1bn. | It estimated that shop crime in the UK in 2005 cost a total of £2.1bn. |
| The report said shoplifting was to blame for almost two-thirds of violent incidents in stores and had forced some shops to close. | The report said shoplifting was to blame for almost two-thirds of violent incidents in stores and had forced some shops to close. |
| Since 2000, shoplifting has cost Britain's retailers £13.26bn, which included £4bn spent on crime prevention, the report said. | |
| 'Extremely worrying' | 'Extremely worrying' |
| The total cost of shop crime in 2005 was down 1.3% on the previous year, and represented 0.86% of business turnover compared with 0.88% in 2004. | The total cost of shop crime in 2005 was down 1.3% on the previous year, and represented 0.86% of business turnover compared with 0.88% in 2004. |
| They [repeat offenders] keep coming back and doing the same thing, because they perceive that there is no effective deterrent Kevin HawkinsBRC director general | They [repeat offenders] keep coming back and doing the same thing, because they perceive that there is no effective deterrent Kevin HawkinsBRC director general |
| BRC director general Kevin Hawkins said: "The huge increase in the number of shoplifting incidents is extremely worrying. | BRC director general Kevin Hawkins said: "The huge increase in the number of shoplifting incidents is extremely worrying. |
| "It is having a very serious financial impact and is putting the safety and wellbeing of staff and customers at risk." | "It is having a very serious financial impact and is putting the safety and wellbeing of staff and customers at risk." |
| The BRC said "soft" penalties for shoplifting and lack of enforcement was partly to blame for soaring shoplifting rates. | The BRC said "soft" penalties for shoplifting and lack of enforcement was partly to blame for soaring shoplifting rates. |
| It said it wanted the government to continue having prison as an option for punishing shoplifters. | It said it wanted the government to continue having prison as an option for punishing shoplifters. |
| Mr Hawkins added: "The penalties are perceived by potential shoplifters to be very light indeed. | Mr Hawkins added: "The penalties are perceived by potential shoplifters to be very light indeed. |
| 'No effective deterrent' | 'No effective deterrent' |
| "The chances of being prosecuted and ending up in court are very remote. "One of the great problems facing retailers is that a lot of shoplifters are repeat offenders - they keep coming back and doing the same thing, because they perceive that there is no effective deterrent." | "The chances of being prosecuted and ending up in court are very remote. "One of the great problems facing retailers is that a lot of shoplifters are repeat offenders - they keep coming back and doing the same thing, because they perceive that there is no effective deterrent." |
| The report also said the rising rates of shoplifting is behind many violent incidents in shops in the UK. | The report also said the rising rates of shoplifting is behind many violent incidents in shops in the UK. |
| It blamed shoplifting on 60% of the attacks on staff in British stores. | It blamed shoplifting on 60% of the attacks on staff in British stores. |
| The report also said smaller and medium-sized stories were less able to spend money on security, and 15% of them had been forced to close because of shoplifting. | The report also said smaller and medium-sized stories were less able to spend money on security, and 15% of them had been forced to close because of shoplifting. |