Britain is experiencing a shoplifting explosion. The Association of Convenience Stores has found that its membership of small shopkeepers endured 5.6 million thefts in 2023, shooting up from 1.1 million in 2022.

I was involved in one of the many millions of incidents set to be recorded for 2024, intervening last night after I spotted a brazen theft when I popped to the shops to pick up some milk. The indicators and warnings were obvious: black cap, big parka, bulging backpack. But the real giveaway was the chap sneaking bottle after bottle of olive oil into his pockets. I filmed the theft in process and alerted the store manager and security, with whom I worked to stop the suspect sneaking out with his free-of-charge goods.

Food should not require security stickers. Guards should not stand by the entrances to supermarkets

A scuffle followed, which ended with him abandoning his coat and bag as he fled the store. Among the items in the bag were (yet more) olive oil, pots of honey and detergent. All of these items are popular on the black market, regularly being sold to dodgier convenience stores at a knockdown price. Other items included some clothing and a small women’s bag. If he’d acquired all of the other items legally, he’d set out with a bizarre shopping list.

I called the police once he left, giving details of his description and items he’d left behind, and the police said they’d note it down and send someone. When I put the phone down, the exasperated store manager told me he deals with these dramas every day, lamenting that the thieves he regularly faces down are emboldened by the limited police presence.

A local police officer in my borough told me this is all down to resources. They said that policing is dangerously over-stretched. The average person would be shocked to know how few officers are on duty at any one time. This means forces have to prioritise and some important stuff – such as responding to thefts – just doesn’t get done.

Figures released last year found that police forces in England are taking on average five and a half hours to respond to priority calls. Most police forces aim to respond to priority calls, when there is urgency but no direct risk to life, in one hour. Unless last night’s thief was armed, it’s likely that I’d be waiting long into the night.

The Met did get in touch with me, asking for more evidence, and issuing me a reference number for my 999 call. They reassured that it would be sent to the investigation team and officers dealing with the incident.

Last October, the government launched a new ‘action plan’ to deal with shoplifting. It said police would prioritise incidents where security guards had been attacked or detained the thief. New specialist teams were stood up. My local bobby added that it should also be remembered that prolific offenders commit hundreds of offences for every one they actually get caught and prosecuted for. He warned that it is only prison that keeps them off the streets and away from the olive oil aisles, but the government intends to get rid of short prison sentences. The outcome? The public and businesses should brace themselves to see a lot more theft.

When Justice Secretary Alex Chalk said in the same month that criminals facing short sentences of less than 12 months should instead expect more suspended sentences and community service, shoplifters were listed as one of the groups expected to benefit most from the change.

Despite the police not being around to support him – ‘prioritised’ to work elsewhere due to limited resources – it was clear that the shop manager takes pride in his work and his duty to protect his wares. But it doesn’t come without risk. Last year, 87 per cent of convenience store staff faced verbal abuse. The association also reported 76,000 acts of violence in small shops in 2023. He’s lucky to have a security guard at the door, but many independent stores lack much by way of security and crime-tackling measures.

All of this is costing consumers dearly. Every time we go to the shops, British consumers are covering a 10p ‘crime tax’, with theft and security measures costing the average store £6,800 a year.

Remarkably, none of this seemed to matter to the good folk of Twitter, who reacted to my post on X about the incident by saying that I was a grass. They said I should have looked the other way, because stealing from a Sainsbury’s is legitimate, because ‘food capitalists’ deserve to be punished. One man told me that ‘snitches get stitches’. I wished him the best of luck.

This attitude is a clear example of the civilisational decay that occupies so many minds. These thefts aren’t as grave as burglaries and carjacking, but they all add up to generating a pernicious low-trust society. Food should not require security stickers. Guards should not stand by the entrances to supermarkets. We should be free to shop without feeling as though we are being tracked by a dozen cameras at all times.

But so long as shoplifting is considered ‘low priority’ and left-wing activists give them cover, petty theft will continue to torment our convenience stores, and leave us all paying the crime tax.