Traders in Bridport and West Bay have welcomed the news that the government is planning to crack down on shoplifting.

The King's Speech yesterday set out the new Labour Government's agenda for the coming year.

As part of the King’s Speech, it was confirmed that assaulting a shop worker would become a standalone offence, while plans to tackle shoplifting and scrapping the so-called unofficial £200 rule were also revealed.

The plans have been welcomed by traders in West Bay and Bridport.

The latest police figures show a 44.9 per cent increase in shoplifting offences from 2022 to 2023 in Dorset.

Read more: 'It's horrendous': Traders want more police on beat as shoplifting figures soar

Julien Maillot, of The Customs House Emporium at West Bay, welcomes a crackdown. He said: "In West Bay, it has always been a problem. It happens quite often.

"You can go to any shop and they can tell you.

"This year we have had a few incidents. I have caught a few people on the CCTV cameras.

"A crackdown is great news, I welcome it, but they are going to have to bring in more police. How they will do that is the only question I would have about it."

A spokesperson for Angling Centre West Bay said: "In my opinion, it shouldn't be called shoplifting. It should be called theft.

"If it is a 50p item or a £500 item it should be treated the same because theft is theft. Anything stolen comes out of the profits.

"There is shoplifting everywhere and they need a big crackdown on it."

Angling CentreAngling Centre (Image: Cristiano Magaglio)

Theresa Richardson, who works at the Spar in East Street, Bridport has spoken on this issue before and says the store ‘gets a lot’ of shoplifters.

She said: "It has been horrendous. We have had a police presence every other Friday evening which has deterred some of the younger people from shoplifting, which has helped, but it is still an ongoing problem.

"It happens all over, it's an endemic.

"The schools will be out soon and that will be a telling time.

"A government crackdown would be amazing. The last thing we want to be doing is tackling shoplifters. It is embarrassing for both sides.

"I can only verbally tell people to stop anyway. It can be quite scary for the staff, some of the younger ones hide."

Read more: West Bay shop owners 'heartbroken' by surge in shoplifting

The Federation of Independent Retailers National President Mo Razzaq said: “We have campaigned long and hard for the government and police to get tougher on retail crime, so it is a relief that the Bill is back on the table.

“What we need now is real action to stem the overwhelming tide of crime against retailers and their staff. Everyone deserves to feel safe at work and for their businesses to be protected against criminals.”