Met Police and retailers agree on action plan to tackle retail crime in London

Senior representatives from the Metropolitan Police, the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime and some of the UK's largest retailers have agreed a new action plan aimed at strengthening the response to retail crime across London.

Following a roundtable at New Scotland Yard, the partners committed to improving intelligence sharing, prioritising retail crime investigations and strengthening collaboration throughout the criminal justice process.

Under the agreement, the Met will prioritise responses to violent incidents and cases where suspects have been detained, improve communication with retailers on investigations and target prolific offenders and organised crime groups.

Retailers, meanwhile, have pledged to provide better-quality evidence, including CCTV and body-worn camera footage, appoint dedicated police contacts and support employees through prosecutions.

The announcement comes as the Met reported a 50 percent increase in arrests for retail crime during 2025/26, while positive case outcomes, including charges and cautions, rose 123 percent to 5,996.

Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium, said: “Working together and sharing intelligence is essential to tackling the scourge of retail crime... Better intelligence sharing, improving reporting, and robust enforcement are critical to turning the tide on retail crime once and for all.”