Hello

This week is Safer Action Business Week. It is a national campaign run by the National Business Crime Centre on behalf of policing.

Every force in the country participates, joining together with local businesses and partners to demonstrate how they are tackling crimes against business and to highlight their successes.

The week focuses on robust operational activity - with additional police patrols across our county, targeted intervention of offenders and a range of crime prevention activities taking place.

In my new term as Police & Crime Commissioner (PCC) I continue to lead nationally for PCCs on business and retail crime. Having spent my previous term holding the same national portfolio, I have spoken to hundreds of retailers and shop-workers and seen, first-hand the detrimental impact that retail crime is having upon our high streets. Tackling it both nationally and here, in Sussex, remains a top priority.

In my previous newsletters, you will have read about how our dedicated Business Crime Team in Sussex are encouraging retailers to report all crimes, in or outside their stores and providing advice on prevention and the use of apps like DISC to quickly share information on suspects and offenders.

At a national level, I have worked closely with major retailers and policing, through our Pegasus Partnership, to make significant improvements in both understanding and tackling organised retail crime. Using advanced technology and convincing retailers to pay for the establishment of specialist police resources within the OPAL team, policing is now mapping and targeting organised retail crime gangs more effectively than ever before.

However, it is important to note, as well as co-operation between retailers and police, we also need sufficient and enforceable criminal justice sanctions. If there is no room in our prisons for shoplifters, we need to use other measures such as electronic tagging of offenders - which the previous Government agreed to and which I hope the new Government will put into action.

This week, we aim to remind the public that shop theft, regardless of the value of the item, will not be tolerated in Sussex and, that any violence shown towards our hard-working retailers, will be met with tough consequences.

Helping victims of hate crime

This week also marks National Hate Crime Awareness Week. Hate crime is defined as a crime against someone based on a part of their identity, which could mean a person being targeted because of a hostility or prejudice towards their disability; race or ethnicity; religion or belief (which includes non-belief); sexual orientation or transgender identity. It is distressing when hate crime is present in our communities. It is a crime that can have a life-changing impact on its victims, making them afraid to leave their homes, go to work or to simply be who they are. I am pleased that, in Sussex, we are taking a strong stance to tackle hate crime through dedicated police work and the sterling efforts of charities and organisations, many of whom are part of my funding network. These charities help, listen to and guide those affected by hate crime, to manage their way through extremely difficult times. You can read more on my website about the national week and specialist services who support people who have been a victim of hate crime.   Katy Bourne OBE Sussex Police & Crime Commissioner