Reports of shoplifting in the MPS area in 2022 and 2021

Freedom of information request reference no: 01.FOI.23.027970

I note you seek access to the following information:

I'd like to request data on the number of shoplifting reports made in the force area in 2022 and 2021, specifically pertaining to supermarkets and essential shops.

Please can you provide figures for shoplifting reports where the logs mention any of the following: Asda; Tesco; Sainsbury's; Morrisons; Aldi; Lidl; Co-op; Marks & Spencer / M&S; Waitrose.

Can you please provide these figures for both the 2021 and 2022 calendar years?

Decision

I have today decided to disclose some of the requested information. Some data has been withheld as it is exempt from disclosure and therefore this response serves as a Refusal Notice under Section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act) by virtue of the following exemptions:

Section 31(1)(a) – Law Enforcement

Reason for decision

Providing the breakdown of shoplifting reports according to which supermarkets have reported would be likely to reveal patterns of potential under-reporting or low detection. This would make these supermarkets more vulnerable to further crimes in the future as they may be perceived as being easier to steal from.

Section 31(1)(a) - Law Enforcement - Information disclosed under the Act is disclosed to the world and not just to the individual asking for the data. Therefore any data released under the Act must be suitable for open publication, and should not be able to be used to circumvent law enforcement in any way.

Disclosing the breakdown of supermarkets and how many shoplifting offences were reported by each would provide information that could be used by potential thieves to commit more crimes at specific locations in the knowledge that they would be less likely to be detected and apprehended there compared to those with higher reporting figures.

Chains with lower figures could be perceived as being more lenient with shoplifters, or even less capable of detections. This would leave them open to more criminal activity, as people may believe they would be less likely to be caught at these locations compared to others. This would particularly be the case if larger chains showed lower figures than smaller chains for example.

Clearly it would not be in the best interests of the public to publish such information as it would also be likely to reduce the effectiveness of policing deterrents as a source for preventing and detecting crime. If criminals were to have full details of which supermarkets were more likely to report / detect this crime, they could use this information to work out where they may be able to commit crime without apprehension. Should any weaknesses be exploited, there is a strong possibility criminality would result causing economic losses to the businesses and higher crime rates in specific areas, which would require MPS time and resources to deal with.

It cannot be in the public interest to disclose information which would undermine our ability to detect crime, and bring offenders to justice, and ultimately, to reduce crime in London.

The MPS has already today provided the number of shoplifting offences overall, and the number in supermarkets generally, thus mitigating the potential harm that has been outlined above and fulfilling the public interest considerations.

I consider that the benefit that would result from further information being disclosed does not outweigh the considerations favouring non-disclosure. This decision is based on the understanding that the public interest is not what interests the public, but what would be of greater good to the community as a whole.

Disclosure

Count of all shoplifting records for the period 01/01/2021 - 31/12/2022

Year	Total
2021	33,325
2022	38,146

Count of shoplifting records in a supermarket setting for the period 01/01/2021 - 31/12/2022

Year	Total
2021	9,422
2022	10,351