Liverpool has been named as the second worst city for illegal vape and convenience shops in the UK, in a new report by Trading Standards.
The Hidden in Plain Sight report also shows that 72% of trading standards professionals have been threatened with violence during the course of their duties.
Only today, a Merseyside Police officer was injured in Huyton after being hit by a car on an enforcement operation, searching for illegal cigarettes and vapes.
Also in the report, it is suggested there is a “corridor of crime” between Liverpool on the west coast, and Hull and Grimsby on the east coast.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch MP spoke about the report in an interview with BBC Radio Merseyside.
On the increase in vape and convenience shops on the high street, she said: “They’re terrible. They are ruining the high street.
“I want us to abolish business rates for small businesses. For the things people want to see on their high street.”
However, she was questioned on the Conservatives’ record on the high street during their 14 years in government.
Tony Snell, host on BBC Radio Merseyside, said: “The state of the high street. It is a big, big deal for people in places where our listeners live. Is the decline the fault of the Conservatives’ 14 years in government? That’s what our listeners will say.”
In response to this, Badenoch said: People often say that. But the truth is, there were things that were done to support and help high streets.”
In an attempt to distance herself from her party’s record over the 14 years, she said: “I’m not saying those 14 years were perfect, and I was not there for most of those 14 years, but we did do some things that were right.”
The report recommends a ten point plan to “reclaim the UK’s high streets.
These include increased investment in Trading Standards and wider enforcement landscape, as well as optimising intelligence sharing and strengthen enforcement powers.
Featured image copyright Roxane Petrou.
