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Labour MP: Don't Charge Poor Shoplifters
Danny_Silver
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Labour MP Michael Meacher has told LBC that poor people should not be charged for shoplifting because they have been “starved into it” by government cuts.
http://www.lbc.co.uk/dont-charge-poor-shoplifters-says-labour-mp-101329
He has a point?
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No why should shops suffer because of thieves.
I worked in a shop years ago that was losing £4000 of items a quarter, the police were not interested and refused to attend if you rang them and the thieves knew it.
Don't assume because someone is poor they don't know what they are doing because most of them do.
This shouldn't apply to people who go in there and nick cigarettes, razors and other high value items to sell on, but the obvious cases where people are just stealing a sandwich or something to eat.
Prosecution rarely accomplishes anything anyway for destitute shoplifters. They get a caution, or charged and go to court, then do it all over again. Putting them in prison actually costs even more money than if they were free and seems like a grossly disproportionate punishment for just 'trying to survive'
Obviously the problem would be that you'd potentially open up the floodgates to people claiming all sorts of things if they think they'd get away with it.
Maybe the lower level stuff could be dealt with differently though ?. Rather than prosecuting someone who simply wants food to eat, maybe compel them to volunteer for a charity for a period of time to essentially work off the punishment ?
As I understand it, motorists caught speeding can be given points on their licence or opt for a speed awareness course to avoid that, so maybe similar thinking can be applied here?
You really are taking this internet fantasist persona to a different level.
I am not so sure if as the shop owner I think it would be ok for people to steal from me , so what if someone breaks into houses as they are poor will that be ok with him as well ?
I would agree that each case should be looked at on a case by case basis , but not announce an across the board rule that will conjure up a whole new breed of "poor shoplifters" and the majority of shoplifters are not poor, in fact most people who are hard up would never dream of stealing from someone else.
And trainers.
What on earth do you base this on?
I'm fairly 'middle-class' (I think?), but if I was homeless I don't think I'd think twice about nicking food from a shop. Why would I not?
Are you going to suggest that they have clothes?
No, I'm suggesting that it is an odd priority, as it is perfecly possible to exist without a mobile phone (I do) but clearly it is not possible to survive without food.
Bet they all smoke **** too...
Have a dog and 13 children.
No, he doesn't.
For a start he needs to define "poor".
I don't think anybody is suggesting that 'career shoplifters' be let off the hook, but rather those who are stealing out of desperation - which I can assure you does happen, even if a majority are stealing for 'commercial' gain.
The annual costs of shoplifting is in the region of £4 billion, the most shoplifted items are branded clothing, high end goods / games etc and alcohol ( food is one of the lowest) , on average 30% ( figures vary annually) of shoplifters who are caught are between 13 and 17, 33 to 35 % of shoplifters are suffering from some form of mental health problems . Which says to me the majority of shoplifters are not doing it because they are poor.
I think you are correct in that a majority aren't. Obviously there are many career shoplifters.
There are still plenty of people - a 'sizeable minority' - who are stealing out of desperation/hunger though.
I can't imagine why anybody in that position who wouldn't steal - I know I would.
And clothes...
Given you can pick up a mobile these days for about £20, and a tenners credit can last months it's actually cheaper to have a mobile than a land line, and if you're looking for a job or even just on job seekers you do tend to need to have a phone number for contact.
There corrected that for you.