SHOPLIFTING has become an epidemic on UK high streets, with business owners complaining brazen thieves nick items multiple times a day.
Government figures reveal there were 519,381 shop thefts across England and Wales in the year to September 2025, up five per cent from 2024.
At Costa Coffee, bosses have hired bouncers to protect their food and drink offering from thieves in Manchester and London.
It comes after similar thefts at Greggs revealed by The Sun last year, thought to be costing the bakery millions of pounds a year.
Customers have noticed the scourge of shoplifting has hit a “tipping point”.
One Costa regular in Denmark Hill, South East London, told The Sun “the area is a mess and shoplifters face no punishment”.
With shoplifting hitting a record high last year, and high street businesses forced to take further costly security measures, is Labour doing enough to tackle the problem?
Have your say in our exclusive poll.
Love to debate? Join Sun Club for just £1.99 a month for the boldest opinion on the issues shaping Britain.
