Police will get extra powers to speed up search warrants in clampdown on soaring mobile phone thefts

6 February 2025, 06:01 | Updated: 6 February 2025, 10:50

By Natasha Clark

@NatashaC

Police will get extra powers to speed up search warrants in a bid to clamp down on soaring mobile phone theft, LBC can reveal.

The Home Secretary is said to be ready to legislate where needed to make sure that cops are treating phone snatching more seriously and stepping up raids nationwide.

It’s expected that she will hand them new powers to speed up the time it takes to sign off warrants to search properties and seize back stolen phones.

Often victims complain they hand GPS and location data of where their stolen phones end up over to police - only to be told they’re unable to act quickly enough to search the property, allowing the offenders time to escape.

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Today she will tell cops to treat phone left more like organised crime – as street crimes like this are up 43 per cent in a year.

Ms Cooper will host the London Mayor, National Crime Agency, Met Police, and a string of tech firms at the Home Office today as she urges them to get a grip on the spiralling problem.

She will highlight successful intensification of the Met Police in London's work to step up work around mobile phones being stolen – where 1,000 phones were seized and 230 arrests made in just a week.

The Home Secretary will tell police forces they need to better share data on phone thefts with the tech firms, and to use intelligence to drive more hotspot policing and targeted operations.

She will tell tech firms including Samsung, Google and Apple that they should team up with police to help design phones which can be left worthless when stolen, with new anti-theft measures.

Cops will be told to target their ramping up of patrols and monitoring around high risk points of the year - like when new phones are released, Christmas, or when kids return to school.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “Over the last few years, mobile phone thefts have shot up – often driven by organised crime – leaving our streets feeling less safe. That has to change.

“That is why I am meeting tech companies and law enforcement today to pursue stronger action against organised criminality and to prevent phone theft on our streets.

"We need partners working together to disrupt, design-out and disincentivise these damaging crimes.  

“At the same time, we are doubling new investment into neighbourhood policing to tackle theft on high streets and in our communities, to keep our streets safe”. 

Ministers last week revealed they would double investment in community policing to £200million – but cops have said they’ll still be forced to slash budgets and make cuts to make ends meet.

Met Chief Sir Mark Rowley told LBC’s Nick Ferrari that he’d have to make tough decisions – and refused to rule out cutting the Met’s dogs unit.

He previously warned he might have to cut thousands of officers to meet the shortfall in cash.