UK Police Minister's Purse Stolen During Her Speech About ‘Theft Epidemic’

Diane Johnson, the UK's Minister of State for Policing, Fire and Crime Prevention, was robbed at a police conference where she spoke about the problem of theft.

This was reported by the BBC.

She was speaking at the annual conference of senior police officers. There, Johnson warned of an ‘epidemic of anti-social behaviour, robbery and shoplifting’.

The Home Office confirmed that Johnson's belongings had been stolen during the conference and said that no security threats had been identified. Police are already investigating the theft of a wallet at a four-star hotel in the Midlands region where the conference was held.

The theft occurred on 10 September, the same day the government began releasing some prisoners early to address prison overcrowding in England and Wales. 

On the eve of the 4 July general election, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that if Labour came to power, it would ‘not stand by while crime takes over the streets’ of the UK. He promised to hire 3,000 new officers and 4,000 community support officers.