M&S Director blasts London mayor Sadiq Khan for being ‘soft on crime’
Summary
- Q. What happened on Clapham High Street?
- A. Hundreds of teenagers, organised via TikTok and Snapchat “link-ups”, swarmed Clapham High Street in south London over two nights in late March 2026. They ransacked shops including M&S, stole goods, assaulted staff and overwhelmed police. Six teenage girls were arrested and the store closed early one evening for safety.
- Q. Why is M&S attacking Sadiq Khan?
- A. M&S retail director Thinus Keeve accused London Mayor Sadiq Khan of being “soft on crime” after repeated violent incidents at the retailer’s London stores, including gang thefts, staff assaults, a headbutt and an ammonia attack that hospitalised a colleague. He said London staff are now “scared to come to work” and has written directly to Khan demanding stronger policing.
- Q. How serious is retail crime in London?
- A. London has the worst rate of witnessed violence and abuse against shop workers in the UK at 32%, according to the British Retail Consortium. Shoplifting offences in the capital have risen sharply, with retailers reporting more brazen and organised attacks on high streets despite some national drops in violence.
Article
Marks & Spencer’s retail director has launched a blistering attack on London Mayor Sadiq Khan, accusing him of being “soft on crime” as the retailer grapples with a surge in brazen thefts, violence against staff, and organised disorder on the capital’s high streets.
In an opinion piece published in The Telegraph and echoed in comments to the BBC, Thinus Keeve said retailers feel “powerless” to protect their stores and employees without stronger government action and a mayor who “prioritises effective policing.”
The criticism comes days after large groups of teenagers, coordinated via social media, descended on Clapham High Street in south London, ransacking shops including an M&S store.
Keeve detailed a string of recent incidents at M&S outlets: gangs forcing open locked cabinets and stripping shelves bare, two men walking out with armfuls of steak, a group ransacking a store and assaulting a security guard, a colleague being headbutted, and another hospitalised after an ammonia attack.
“We need to recognise this for what it is,” he wrote. “A systemic issue. A growing issue. And one that demands a coordinated response across government, policing, and industry.”
“I keep hearing crime is falling, especially in London – something none of us believes, and very few people working in retail would see.”
M&S has poured tens of millions of pounds into security measures, but external affairs director Adam Hawksbee told the BBC that staff are now “scared to come into work” because stores are being specifically targeted by criminal gangs. “There is only so much you can do,” he said.
The comments highlight a growing rift between major retailers and City Hall over perceptions of safety in London.
Khan and Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley have repeatedly dismissed claims that the capital is unsafe as “lies,” pointing to falls in serious crime, including violence with injury, burglary, and homicide.
Keeve has written directly to Khan, who is expected to meet with M&S in the coming days, and M&S chief executive Stuart Machin has written to Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood calling for urgent action.
The row comes against a backdrop of persistent retail crime nationwide. According to the British Retail Consortium’s 2026 Crime Report (covering the year to August 2025), retailers recorded an average of 1,600 incidents of violence and abuse against shop workers every day – the second-highest figure on record, though down from 2,000 daily the previous year. London had the highest proportion of people witnessing such violence, at 32%.
