Rosie Wrighting

Yes, absolutely. I will say more about that in my speech. We cannot have a conversation about policing on our high streets without talking about retail crime. In March, when Geek Retreat in Kettering was targeted, a brick was thrown through the window and eggs were smashed on the shop front. Retailers up and down the high street spoke of similar experiences of shoplifting and antisocial behaviour and the lengths to which they have to go to mitigate it. One shop reallocated shifts to prevent more vulnerable members of staff being intimidated at closing time. It is unacceptable that over 2,000 incidents of violence or abuse towards retail workers are reported every single day. As someone who started their career in retail working on a shop floor in Kettering, I know the impact of intimidation and what it can do to someone who is just trying to do their job. Retailers have spent a record £1.8 billion on crime prevention measures in just one year in the UK. Local businesses in Kettering, which are the backbone of our economy, should not have to invest in private security, additional shutters or panic buttons just to stay afloat. We need to create high streets where people, their families and their businesses can thrive. I know that my constituents will be glad to hear the Minister reaffirm the Government’s commitment to our high streets today. I stood on a manifesto that included a five-point plan for high streets, pledging to tackle antisocial behaviour with 13,000 more neighbourhood police and PCSOs by 2029. Those manifesto pledges have become the Government’s Crime and Policing Bill, which introduces the biggest package of measures on crime and policing in decades, with 50 new laws, including giving police and others stronger powers by introducing respect orders to stamp out antisocial behaviour. This debate is about not just crime statistics or police funding, but how we can protect what we value most in our communities: the right of everyone in Kettering and all our constituencies to feel safe where they live and work.