Policing Minister Chris Philp has pledged every shoplifting offence will be investigated by officers following a surge in offences across the country.

His comments come as the John Lewis Partnership said it is facing a £12 million jump in the cost of shoplifting and Lidl announced it was stepping up investment in-store security by ramping up CCTV coverage and rolling out more body-worn cameras.

Speaking on Good Morning Britain, Mr Philp said: “I am asking police to take a much tougher approach. always investigating where there is evidence that can be followed up and in shoplifting they almost always have CCTV.

“I would like every incident to be investigated.”