Burglaries and shoplifting "decriminalised" as most offences don’t result in a suspect being charged

EMBARGO: 22.30 Tuesday 29th April

• Shocking figures reveal fewer than one in twenty (4.5%) burglaries committed last year led to a suspect being charged
• Shoplifting offences rose to a new record high last year but only one in five saw a suspect charged
• Ed Davey warns that burglaries and shoplifting are effectively being “decriminalised” as communities pay the price for hollowed out local policing

The Liberal Democrats have warned that burglaries and shoplifting are being effectively “decriminalised,” after shocking figures uncovered by the party show how few of these offences resulted in a suspect being charged last year.

The House of Commons Library analysis commissioned by the Liberal Democrats shows that fewer than one in twenty burglaries last year resulted in a suspect being charged. There were 172,544 residential burglary offences recorded last year, of these a suspect was only charged in 7,761 cases or 4.5% of the total. That is down from 5.17% of burglaries that led to a suspect being charged in 2023.

Shockingly in Derbyshire, just 2% of burglaries last year led to a suspect being charged. The other forces with the lowest proportion of recorded burglaries resulting in a suspect being charged were Hertfordshire (2.11%), Leicestershire (2.56%), Sussex (2.64%) and Gloucestershire (2.86%).

The research also shows that despite shoplifting rising to a new record high last year, in more than four in five cases criminals are getting away with it. Of the record 516,791 shoplifting offences recorded last year, only 93,156 or 18% resulted in a suspect being charged. In Leicestershire, only 4.9% of shoplifting offences resulted in a suspect being charged, while for London’s Metropolitan Police the figure was just 5.25%.

The Liberal Democrats warned that after years of neglect under the Conservatives, planned cuts to policing budgets under Labour risk making the unsolved crimes epidemic facing local communities even worse. The Liberal Democrats are calling for a return to neighbourhood policing, along with a burglary response guarantee to ensure that all domestic burglaries are attended by the police and properly investigated.

Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said:

“It is shocking that crimes like burglaries and shoplifting are being effectively decriminalised, leaving local communities to pay the price.

“Being burgled isn’t just about stolen possessions – it’s about the trauma of feeling unsafe in your own home, the place where you should feel most secure. Yet your chance of getting justice depends on your postcode, with far too many victims being let down while criminals get away scot free.

“Under the Conservatives, our police forces were hollowed out and neglected, and now Labour is continuing to let communities down by failing to give local policing the funding it desperately needs.

“This Thursday is a chance to vote for real change. Every vote for the Liberal Democrats is a vote for a return to neighbourhood policing, where crimes like burglaries are properly investigated. People deserve to know that if their home is violated, they will be taken seriously and those responsible will be brought to justice."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

House of Commons Library research can be found here.