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 across England and Wales in the year to September 2025, up five per cent from 2024.

A Costa Coffee employee and a security guard inside a Costa Coffee shop.Security Guard at a Costa Coffee in London where shoplifting has skyrocketedCredit: Dan Charity

At Costa Coffee, bosses have hired bouncers to protect their offering from thieves in Manchester and London.

It comes after similar 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?

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A security guard looking at his phone next to food and drink shelves in a Costa Coffee shop.Costa Coffee in Denmark Hill has employed a security guard to deter shopliftersCredit: Ian Whittaker

Eze Chidiebere Paul

Eze Chidiebere Paul

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