SHOPLIFTERS are set to cost East Lancashire businesses £5million this Christmas as police battle against organised gangs of thieves.

Traders said the annual crime binge had already begun as new figures revealed there would be a five per cent increase in cases during the festive season.

Police have vowed to give thieves in the region's shoplifting hotspots a frosty reception following the research from retail experts.

But despite the police crackdown, shoplifting is becoming a growing problem and the president of the Chamber of Trade in Blackburn, Raymond Goldstone, said out-of-town gangs were an increasing menace.

Operation Fluorescent has been launched in Burnley by police chiefs in a bid to deter criminals from the town centre and similar action is being taken throughout the rest of East Lancashire.

The operation will see extra high visibility police patrols throughout town centres, regular visits to vulnerable premises, increased crime prevention activity and the targeting of suspected offenders.

Officers in Blackburn and Accrington will also be on high-visibility patrol across the festive season.

Police are stepping up measures after the Centre for Retail Research, based in Nottingham, revealed that shoplifting is set to cost retailers throughout the country £468million - up from £447million last year.

It said Manchester and Liverpool will be the main North West targets, although towns like Burnley, Blackburn and Accrington will also be high on the thieves' shopping list.

Professor Joshua Bamfield, of the Centre for Retail Research, said: "In East Lancashire, like other places in the country, somebody may be arrested four or five times for shoplifting, they will be cautioned but may not appear in court and this is what's happening many, many times.

"There are organised gangs who are taking orders already and trying to meet these orders and this happens in Burnley quite often. There is also the amateur thief who buys some items and steals others to try and disguise what they are doing.

"According to the figures, East Lancashire is likely to face around £5million in shoplifting."

Mr Goldstone, who has electrical goods shops in Blackburn and Accrington, was not surprised to hear the estimate that £5million worth of goods would be stolen from shops in

East Lancashire over a six-week period.

"Sadly, it is a problem that does not go away and it has got worse with the spread of open-plan stores," he said. "A higher police presence helps reduce thefts and traders are themselves more vigilant .

"We have security staff who know the worst offenders, but we are now seeing gangs coming in from other towns who are not recognised."

The Burnley police operation will also involve working with local retailers and licensees to reduce the number of thefts and incidents of drunk and disorderly behaviour.

Lisa Durkin, of the town centre management team, said: "The problem costs our shops hundreds of thousands of pounds each year. Many of them set aside around five per cent of their annual budget to allow for shoplifting, which can be very damaging for business."

Burnley police inspector Richard Robertshaw said: "The number of people visiting Burnley to shop and socialise increases at this time of year and if left unchecked, crime would probably increase significantly too.

"Our message to offenders is clear - commit crime and we will do our level best to make sure that you pay the price. Given the time of year that will include, where appropriate, ensuring that offenders spend Christmas behind bars."

Rob Teague, owner of the Car Shop in Burnley, said: "I have owned the business for 12 years and in that time I have noticed an increase in the amount of shoplifting going on so I would certainly back anything the police are doing to try and prevent it from happening."

Phil Bond, president of the Hyndburn Chamber Of Trade, said the group have been targeting theft for a number of years through the HEART scheme, or Hyndburn Association of Retailers Against Theft.

But he added: "There is a need to be extra vigilant at Christmas, people can become more desperate to be able to buy the things they need."

Sergeant Mark Porter, town centre sergeant for Accrington, said: "Christmas does see a rise in the activity of shoplifters. Every year in Accrington we put together an operation in the town centre to beat this rise, so we have extra officers out this year with a view to preventing it. Also what we find is that we probably detect more shoplifting offences that might otherwise not be detected."