THE deputy head of policing in Oxfordshire has said he wants to use extra police officers pledged by government to crack down on shoplifting.

In a video posted on Twitter, Thames Valley deputy police and crime commissioner Matthew Barber spoke with two Blackbird Leys shopkeepers about their crime experiences.

Mr Barber wrote in the caption: “[I am] determined to ensure additional officers are deployed in local neighbourhoods to deter criminals and tackle issues such as shoplifting.”

Read also: Nightclub attacker avoids jail after judge blames victim

In the video one of the shop managers said: “I have stopped reporting because of the time it takes to get through to 101.

"I can’t ask for a dedicated line, but there must be a way – even if it's reporting by email – something that can be picked up over the next 24 hours to come back, that would be great."

Mr Barber added: “I agree and I hugely appreciate your time and talking to you. As I say, the increase in police officers that we are hoping to get started in the next few months, I want to make sure it all goes into local neighbourhood policing – whether that’s local response, local neighbourhood or local CID, to make sure that you see the presence on the ground in places like Blackbird Leys.

Read also: Man admits sending white powder to former Oxfordshire MP

“With things like 101, I completely agree that there is a huge amount of effort been put into reducing the call times and encouraging people to report things online so that the even seemingly small things that may not get a direct police response there and then can feed in to build up the bigger picture so that potentially we can pin a number of offences on people. I think that is really important."