Britain is facing an “epidemic” of shoplifting, the chain’s chief executive John Lewis said on Tuesday, as a growing number of British retailers called on authorities to take tougher measures to combat the situation, Reuters reported.

“It became an epidemic. “Unfortunately, last year we saw twice as many crimes” of this kind, said Sharon White, chairman of the John Lewis store chain, which owns several brands in its portfolio, including Waitrose supermarkets.

She made the comments in an interview with BBC Radio just a day after calling on the Rishi Sunak-led government to set up a commission to look into the problems facing town centres, warning that they risked becoming “a looting ground for brazen thieves and organized gangs”.

George Weston, chief executive of Associated British Foods, which also owns the well-known clothing chain Primark, said on Tuesday that the situation had led to the need to increase spending on security guards, cameras and shoulder cameras for employees.

“But we must highlight, as others do, the role of the police, the Crown Prosecution Service and the magistrates in dealing with this problem, which is only getting worse,” he told Reuters. “They are doing more, but it is not enough,” he said of the British authorities’ efforts.

British shoplifting has become ‘organised’

Weston also said that shoplifting had become “quite organised” and that Primark had seen higher levels of anti-social behaviour.

His and White’s comments echo those made last month by Tesco CEO Ken Murphy, who announced that Britain’s biggest supermarket chain had started offering shoulder cameras to workers who needed them.

Murphy also called for changes to UK law to criminalize abuse and violence against retail workers as a separate offence.

Shoplifting has also become a problem in the United States and other European countries as the cost-of-living crisis has reduced consumer incomes.