British restaurant and retail leaders send desperate message to Labour: ‘Must be priority’

A group of leading British restaurant and retail bosses have pleaded with the Home Secretary to provide better protection for delivery riders, who are an “essential lifeline” of the industry,

Over 30 Over 30 leading UK restaurants and supermarkets with more than 3,000 sites across the UK have written a letter to Yvette Cooper urging her to sanction greater protections from abuse under the Government’s new Bill to tackle crime.

Deliveroo, Pizza Express,  Wingstop, Morrisons and Pho are among the businesses to call for an expansion of the Government’s plan to create a new offence for assaulting or threatening retail workers at their place of work, to include delivery riders while they are out on their jobs.

It comes as part of Deliveroo’s Right to Ride Safely campaign launched in November 2024, after figures from the company’s rider survey showed a 28% increase in reported abuse, including theft and verbal abuse, in April to September 2024, compared to the previous six months.

The campaign is backed by GMB, one of the UK’s largest unions, and the British Retail Consortium.

The Government has committed to creating a standalone offence of assaulting or threatening a retail worker when they’re at their place of work in the upcoming Crime & Policing Bill.

But executives from firms, which also includes Bella Italia, Cafe Rouge and Dishoom, say this stops short of protecting delivery riders when they are on a delivery.

They want designated protection for delivery riders for the entire duration of their delivery – from accepting the order, travelling to collect it, all the way through to dropping it off at the customer’s house.

In a joint letter they ask the Government to act and send a “clear message” that abuse against delivery riders “will not be tolerated”.

It reads: “There are real people behind these numbers – people who face physical and verbal assault, racism, sexism and theft.

“The Government has rightly committed to creating a standalone offence of assaulting or threatening our retail workers when they’re at their place of work, but this stops short of protecting delivery riders when they are on a delivery.”

Instead, backers of the campaign want the Government to include delivery riders in the new offence, to apply throughout their whole journey from accepting an order, to travelling to collect it and drop it off to customers.

They said the proposals would “safeguard hundreds of thousands of couriers”.

The letter came as the Government’s Crime and Policing Bill was introduced to Parliament today.

Among the measures to tackle anti-social behaviour and knife crime, there are plans to protect retail workers by introducing the new offence, and by making shop theft of under £200 value a more serious offence.

The letter to Ms Cooper adds that Deliveroo is also calling on the Government to make clear in law that restaurants and other hospitality settings are included in the definition of a “retail premises”.

It adds: “We welcome the UK Government’s plans to make our streets safer by delivering the accountability and resources needed to tackle crime effectively and our proposals support that commitment.

“Delivery riders, like those riding with Deliveroo, are an essential lifeline for our industry, connecting our businesses to homes, workplaces and communities nationwide.

“They help us keep the UK’s hospitality and retail sectors thriving, ensure our customers receive the meals they love and play a vital role in boosting high streets and local economies.

“Protecting them must be a priority for us all.”

Association of Convenience Stores chief executive James Lowman said he hopes a clear message that shop theft and assaults on workers will be taken seriously by the police and the justice system.

“People running and working in shops deserve to be treated with respect, and we believe this Bill takes important steps toward that goal,” he said.

In the year ending last September, police recorded more than 490,000 offences of shop theft – a 23% rise on the previous 12-month period, according to the Home Office.

Responding to the delivery rider campaign, a Home Office spokesman said: “Any form of abuse a worker may experience is unacceptable, and we would expect the police to take appropriate action where necessary.”