Shoplifting offences in London on the rise

Shoplifting in London has continued to rise, with offences up by 54% last year compared with 2023, according to new data.

Almost 90,000 shoplifting offences were recorded in the capital in 2024, up from roughly 58,000 the previous year, according to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Shoplifting offences across the rest of England – excluding London – increased by 15% in the last year.

Sir Sadiq Khan's office said the mayor was "determined to do all he can to tackle crime and its complex causes", and added there was "clearly still more work to do" to tackle shoplifting and other offences.

Sir Sadiq previously blamed the increase in shoplifting on the fact the city has "a lot of shops" compared with other parts of the country, along with the capital's particularly high cost of living.

According to the ONS, theft from the person also increased in London in 2024 by 41%.

In the rest of England – excluding the capital – theft from the person decreased by 14%. In Greater Manchester, the fall was greater at 28%.

In the capital, other offences, including possession of weapons offences fell 20%, violence with injury decreased by 15%, and stalking and harassment dropped 10%.

The capital continues to account for almost a third of knife crime across England, with an incident occurring in the city roughly every 30 minutes.

A spokesman for the mayor of London said: "Sadiq is determined to do all he can to tackle crime and its complex causes and build on progress that has been achieved in London, with the number of young people being injured with a knife, homicides, gun crime with lethal barrel discharges and burglary all down since 2016.

"ONS figures show that Londoners are less likely to be a victim of violence resulting in injury than across the rest of England and Wales.

"But there is clearly still more work to do to tackle knife crime, shoplifting and theft."

The spokesperson said the mayor recently announced a record £1.16bn investment for the Met Police which would "save 935 neighbourhood police officer roles and ensure officers are visible in our high streets".

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