Current status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 10 December 2024
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether it would provide funding to an equivalent scheme to Project Pegasus in England and Wales to tackle retail crime.
The Scottish Government is aware of the business and policing partnership Project Pegasus, currently operating in England and Wales. We are committed to exploring any possible options to tackle organised retail crime in Scotland and are open to exploring the prospect of implementing a similar joint initiative between Police Scotland, the Scottish Government and our valued retail stakeholders in an effort to do all we can to combat the unacceptable rise in organised crime affecting retailers.
To demonstrate this commitment, the Scottish Government’s draft budget for 2025-26 includes up to £3 million in funding to be used for the purpose of exploring the implementation of a similar partnership between the Scottish Government, Police Scotland and Scotland’s retail sector in an effort to combat organised retail crime.