MK Labour is pledging to form new taskforce in a bid to tackle theft, anti-social behaviour and retail crime in Milton Keynes.

As part of MK Labour’s manifesto for a ‘better future for Milton Keynes’, the party has unveiled its pledge to establish a new Safety, Theft, Anti-social behaviour, and Retail Crime Taskforce (START).

The rate of shoplifting in England and Wales hit its highest level for more than two decades at the end of last year, with 402,482 shoplifting offences recorded by police between September 2022 and September 2023. The number of incidents was up 32% from the previous 12 months nationally.

In Milton Keynes, the number of reported incidents of violent crime are up 42%, and up 19% for possession of weapons.

Labour will look to bring together police and other local agencies with stakeholders, such as retailers, to seek ways to tackle these issues in a bid to crackdown on these issues within the city.

Plans for the START force include bringing retailers together, helping them to communicate and share information about suspicious activity and police patrols, in the right place at the right time, to act as a deterrent.

MK Labour has announced its key policies to tackle crime in the city which also include:

• Putting more community police on MK’s streets.
• Focussing on tackling and preventing knife crime.
• Continuing to tackle violence against women and girls.
• Taking a no-nonsense approach to aggressive street begging.
• Use all Council powers to move on unauthorised encampments as quickly as possible.
• Continuing to drive down fly-tipping and littering.
• Carrying on working partners to clamp down on car cruising events across the city.

Labour Leader of Milton Keynes City Council, Cllr Peter Marland said:

“Crime and anti-social behaviour are a key concern for businesses, residents and local communities across Milton Keynes. If we are successful in the local elections, on Thursday 2^nd May, we will establish a taskforce to tackle anti-social behaviour and retail crimes, helping us to take back our streets and protect our city.

“Similar schemes have been seen to help cut shoplifting offences in other authorities and we think it’s imperative that the police force works closely with businesses, organisations and the council to help build a safer place for residents. Underfunding from the Torys has led to a lack of trust in the police force, we want to invest in community safety and give our residents that faith back.”