Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. I might ask the Minister for Justice, Deputy Harris, to speak to him about it directly today. We all believe that shoplifting, larceny and such crimes should be taken seriously. It is not just a case of something being taken from a shop. It jeopardises businesses and, potentially, the employment of the people working in those businesses. In general, retailers operate off small margins, so just one or two items being taken might be the same as eliminating the margins from 20 or 30 items, thus putting the business under pressure, rendering it unable to pay bills it owes to others and making it unable to keep staff on. It is a serious offence and it is important that it is treated seriously.

See this speech in context