Shoplifting decreases by a third in Scotland in pandemic year

The number of shoplifting incidents has decreased by 33 per cent in the past year, according to the latest annual statistics.

Official figures show that the total number of shoplifting incidents recorded by Police Scotland in the past year decreased to 20,557 in 2020-21, from 30,688 in 2019-20.

The National Statistics Recorded Crime in Scotland 2020-21 bulletin noted the decline in recorded shoplifting follows an increasing trend since 2014-15, and cites pandemic related restrictions as the likely reason for the decrease in the past year.

Earlier in July, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has reported a similar decline in police recorded shoplifting offences (36%) in England and Wales, as theft offences as a whole went down amid the pandemic restrictions.

The annual statistics show that recorded crime remains at one of the lowest levels in nearly 50 years in Scotland.

Between 2019-20 and 2020-21, crimes recorded by the police in Scotland remained almost unchanged, decreasing by just 5 crimes from 246,516 to 246,511.

Overall, total number of crimes is down by five crimes from the previous year. However, taking into account the 20,976 crimes recorded under Coronavirus related legislation, compared to just 107 towards the end of 2019-20, other crime categories have collectively decreased by 8 per cent in the past year.

“These statistics show how crime in areas like vandalism and dishonesty, the sorts of crime that affects peoples’ everyday lives, has fallen – with levels not seen since the 1970s,” Scottish Justice Secretary Keith Brown said.

“And while Covid-19 has no doubt had an impact on the figures, recorded crime was on a downward trend beforehand and through the measures we recently announced in our Programme for Government – we will continue to make Scotland a safe place to live.”

However, industry surveys have shown that crime and abuse against retailers has increased last year. The ACS 2021 Crime Report reveals that 89 per cent of colleagues working in local shops have experienced some form of abuse, with over 1.2 million incidents recorded over the last year.