Local MP Alan Mak has been on patrol in Leigh Park to find out how police are tackling shoplifting, after calling on them to prioritise shoplifting reduction.
He met up with PC Ian Mitchell, the Designated Neighbourhood Officer for Battins and West Leigh, to visit Greywell Shopping Centre and see first-hand how retail theft is being treated as a priority.
Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary is focusing on prosecuting repeat offenders and using CCTV appeals to identify suspects.
Businesses in Hampshire can also sign up to UK Partners Against Crime (UKPAC), an AI-powered app that can be used to report shoplifting, share intelligence, and identify offenders.
This initiative is supported by the Constabulary and involves more than 540 businesses who receive real-time alerts and can see watchlists of known offenders.
The app helps to track patterns of criminal behaviour and links prolific offenders across different locations.
UKPAC also allows retailers to report incidents directly, bypassing the need to call 101, and creates stronger evidence packages for police to secure prosecutions.
By late 2025 it had led to 66 convictions in Hampshire and more than 45 years in combined custodial sentences.
Mr Mak said: "I strongly support concerted police action against shoplifting, and I have called on the police to make tackling shoplifting a priority locally.
"Retailers and their staff deserve support and offenders must be made to realise they can't get away with stealing."
He added: "The UKPAC app is a great way of using technology to help businesses fight back against shoplifting.
"But I also believe it is very important that our police officers are seen out and about in the community, as that is both reassuring to local residents and also acts as a deterrent to those who commit crime.
"It is why I called on Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary to implement the Local Bobby Scheme, which ensures the public have access to a named and easily contactable police officer who is also a visible presence in the community."
To find out who your Local Bobby is and how to contact them by phone or email, go to www.alanmak.org.uk/LocalBobby and type in your postcode.
