Shoplifting increased in Gwent as the cost-of-living crisis ramped up, figures suggest – though police-recorded thefts remain below pre-pandemic figures.

Much of 2022 has been dominated by surging inflation, rising food prices and soaring energy bills, which have left many households across the UK reassessing how they are going to pay the bills.

An issue that was already bubbling away last year as the price of goods started outstripping wage growth, the cost-of-living crisis was exacerbated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February, which escalated food and energy prices across the globe.

And figures obtained through a Freedom of Information request by RADAR reveal Gwent Police recorded 1,040 shoplifting offences between April 1 and August 31 this year.

Although that was a rise of ​16.9 per cent compared to the 890 logged during the same period last year, the force recorded 1,452 thefts from shops over the five-month period in 2019 – 412 more.

Police forces were asked to provide the number of shoplifting offences recorded between the start of April and end of August, as well as the outcomes of such crimes.

Across England and Wales, 109,534 shoplifting offences were reported to the 38 police forces which responded to the FOI request – 22 per cent more than last year, but a drop of 17.9 per cent compared to 2019.

Between April and August, 154 (14.8 per cent ) shoplifting crimes resulted in a charge or summons in Gwent, suggesting a significant proportion led to no suspect being charged – though ​407 had not been assigned an outcome at the time of the request.

Some major supermarkets reported that they were boosting security due to fears of an increase in shoplifting as household bills rose.

Sabine Goodwin, coordinator of the Independent Food Aid Network, which comprises independent food banks across the UK, said people are becoming “more and more desperate” as the cost-of-living crisis exacerbates pre-existing poverty in Britain.

“People are being faced with impossible choices as food insecurity spirals out of control,” she said.