Alex Norris column: This change to the law will finally benefit Britain's army of shop workers

​This followed many years of Government opposition to the proposal.

For years, shop workers, their trade union, USDAW, and retailers both large and small, have been calling on the Government to give proper legal protection to shop workers facing a wave of violence and abuse at work. Last month, the Government finally announced it would accept this proposal.

Our high streets, across the country and here in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, have been struggling for many years now.

Rising crime, antisocial behaviour and police forces stretched thinly and struggling to cope, have not helped the situation. Local residents frequently raise with me their concern about these worrying trends.

Figures recently released by the British Retail Consortium, the trade body representing retailers, shows the scale of the problem.

Last year, they estimated a staggering 1,300 incidents of violence or abusive incidents against retail workers every day.

This was a 50 per cent rise on the previous year. Thefts have also doubled to 16.7 million incidents, making it £1.8bn the amount that has been lost to shoplifting in the past year - the highest on record.

No-one should have to fear going to work. That was why as far back as 2018 I introduced a Bill to Parliament to create a standalone offence of assault of a shop worker.

This would give shop workers the legal protection they need in the face of threats and abuse and give the police and the justice system the tools they need to bring the perpetrators of this to justice.

Despite calls from MPs and the industry, both workers and employers, the Government has consistently refused to implement the change until a few weeks ago when they finally relented.

I pay tribute to everyone who has campaigned for years for this change to happen. Until as recently as January 2024, the Government blocked attempts I made to introduce the new offence. However, the hard work and commitment of campaigners has finally forced a change that will benefit Britain's army of shop workers.

I await the specific details of what the Government are proposing, and I will be working hard to ensure they deliver something that meets the calls of shop workers and retailers.

Of course, there is always more work to do. I will now be turning my efforts to the Government’s £200 rule which downgrades the response to the shoplifting of goods valued under £200.

This has given criminals free rein to shoplift without facing the full force of the law.

Going forwards, my focus will be ensuring the Government scrap this rule and do all it can to make Britain's streets safe.