Ms Julie Dorel:

I am joined by Noel Dunne, essential retailer. As Ireland’s leading food retailer, wholesale and food service company, Musgrave, together with its retail partners, supports more than 41,000 jobs in more than 1,000 stores, warehouses and offices. Every day, we feed one in three people in Ireland through 15 market-leading food and beverage brands. Through our retail brands SuperValu, Centra and Daybreak, we are at the heart of local communities throughout the country. We partner with independent retailers who, together with their staff, work tirelessly every day to serve friends, neighbours and the wider local community. In many communities around the country, the local SuperValu or Centra is a key employer. In fact, the average SuperValu employs between 80 and 100 people and the average Centra between 25 and 30 people.

The operating environment within the retail sector has changed in many ways in recent years. Worryingly, however, in particular through the past two years, the levels of crime, violence and anti-social behaviour towards staff are at an all-time high. Retailers are experiencing three types of crime, namely, organised gangs, opportunistic criminals and an alarming rise in the number of underage youths who get a kick out of intimidating staff and are totally lacking in fear given there are little or no repercussions for their actions.

Shoplifting sounds innocuous - what harm can it do? It is not a victimless crime. Retail is a low-margin business and stock walking out the door daily has a serious impact on a retailer’s profit for the week – money that pays wages and taxes and keeps the lights on. More than that, there is the impact on staff of being verbally abused, threatened and intimidated. Nobody should come to work and feel threatened and unsafe while doing an honest day’s work. For the individuals, this is terrifying. Retailers are very concerned for the safety and well-being of their staff. They are worried staff will not want to return at a time when retaining and attracting staff is already a challenge. Every day, retailers tell us about an upsurge in theft and anti-social behaviour and the debilitating effect it is having on them and their staff, both emotionally and physically. There could be more than 1,000 issues a week across our network that mainly go unreported. This fully supports survey findings from RGDATA which describe the situation as out of control. My colleague, Mr. Dunne, is a Centra retailer in Dublin who is currently dealing with two to three incidents a day. He can provide the committee with more detail later in proceedings.

In addition to the emotional impact on retail workers, the financial cost and implications associated with retail crime are significant at a time when independent retailers are facing a barrage of increased costs. International events have driven up a range of input prices, especially with energy costs remaining at more than double pre-Covid levels. Domestically, retailers are dealing with the cumulative financial impact of a number of Government measures, including the living wage and sick pay. Further labour costs increases, including pension auto-enrolment, are planned. We are awaiting the publication of the retail costs audit as recommended by the National Competitiveness and Productivity Council to highlight the increased burden faced by retail SMEs. Without greater supports in the current economic climate, independent retailers are increasingly coming under pressure to retain existing employment levels and maintain opening hours. In a highly competitive environment, all additional costs, such as those resulting from theft, increase the threat to the viability of some retailers. Retail crime is not victimless; it has an impact on owners, colleagues, and customers. It is an issue that has been raised and discussed with the Garda on several occasions in the past year, including at the retail forum chaired by the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond. We fully appreciate there is no silver bullet for tackling retail crime. We would welcome, however, any steps that can be taken to address the situation and are willing to work with the relevant Departments and trade bodies.

We were appalled by the recent events in Dublin city centre. Some of our stores are still dealing with the fallout. We are asking the Government to step up its efforts to tackle this issue to ensure, as a sector, we can keep retailers, staff and customers safe. The recruitment of more gardaí for front-line policing duties would be welcomed. However, there is a need for a responsive, resourced and dedicated operation by the Garda to tackle assaults on retail workers and theft from shops specifically. I thank members for listening. We are happy to answer questions.