A record number of shoplifting crimes were recorded in Dyfed and Powys last year, new figures show.

It comes as more than half a million of these theft offences were registered by police forces in England and Wales.

A retail businesses association said the crime "is continuing to spiral out of control", and called for better policing "to tackle this epidemic of crime".

New Home Office figures show 2,149 shoplifting offences were recorded by Dyfed-Powys Police in 2024 – up 9% from 1,978 the previous year, and the highest figure since records began in 2003.

Across England and Wales, police forces logged 516,971 shoplifting offences last year – up 20% from 429,873 in 2023, and also the highest figure since records began, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Shoplifting offences have been running at record levels for the past two years and have seen a "sharp rise" since the Covid-19 pandemic, the ONS warned.

Tom Ironside, director of business and regulation at the British Retail Consortium, warned: "Retail crime is continuing to spiral out of control with shop theft costing retailers over £2.2bn a year.

"And while retailers are spending £1.8bn on anti-crime measures, thieves are becoming bolder, and more aggressive, resulting in an increase in violence and abuse against staff.

"It is vital we see more police resource allocated to tackle this epidemic of crime."

He added recorded shoplifting offences "severely underestimate the problem", as retailers "simply don’t have faith that action will be taken by the police" and do not always report shoplifting.

He warned: "If you ask most shopkeepers they’ll tell you they’re lucky if a day goes by without a shoplifting incident."

James Lowman, chief executive of the Association of Convenience Stores, said: "The increase in shop theft shown by these figures reflects what our members are seeing every day in their stores.

"The volume of theft is still massively under-reported though: our own member survey revealed 6.2 million thefts recorded by convenience stores alone."

He said the growing number of thefts reported to police "is encouraging", as reporting is essential to identifying repeat shoplifting offenders. He added it is "still only the tip of the iceberg" though.

He called on the Government to implement the Crime and Policing Bill and the Retail Crime Action Plan to tackle shoplifting and support retailers.

The figures show 1.8 million theft offences were recorded by forces in England and Wales last year, which was only up 1% on the previous year.

The ONS said the increase was driven by the rise in shoplifting and theft from the person, which was up 22% in 2024, while other types of theft offences such as burglary and bicycle theft decreased.

Policing minister Dame Diana Johnson said: "This Labour Government will not tolerate the criminality blighting our communities.

"That’s why we’re putting almost 3,000 more bobbies on the beat in neighbourhood roles this year, and under our leadership, these crimes will receive the attention they deserve."

She added: "Today’s figures are yet more evidence of the damage done by destroying neighbourhood policing as the Tories did over 14 years."