Maria said,
‘’Shoplifting, which can sometimes include threats of violence against staff and other shoppers, has become a real worry for too many residents. That’s why I have called for extra police assigned to our neighbourhoods and back these new, tougher laws. Some new beat bobbies are in place already, and I am holding beat surgeries across the borough; and the new laws include a standalone criminal offense for assaults on retail workers, GPS tagging for repeat shoplifters and an extra £55.5 million in facial recognition technology, already being rolled out in Hampshire.
‘’On top of these changes, the Government will help businesses report crimes by encouraging the design of new prevention systems and adopting cutting-edge digital evidence management systems, so evidence can more easily be shared with the police.
‘’Together these changes will massively help to reduce retail crime and begin to bring a halt to shoplifting across the Country, including here in Basingstoke.’’
