Retailers 'losing €2m-a-day due to shoplifting'

The Small Firms Association has claimed that Irish retailers are losing €2m-a-day due to shoplifting in the run-up to Christmas.

The association said most thieves targeted branded goods like sportswear and perfumes that could be easily resold.

It said the problem of shoplifting was getting progressively worse, despite the fact that retailers had spent large sums of money on CCTV, security staff, tagging, alarm systems and other security measures.

SFA director Pat Delaney said: "Despite all of this, the cost of crime is increasing, the extent, the scope and the impact of it is getting more damaging for businesses and we don't seem to be making any progress in terms of the number of gardaí or the penal system and how they deal with this."