Police forced to scrap 'barmy' plan to not arrest shoplifters who take goods under £50 after business owners branded it a 'looters' charter' Hammersmith and Fulham police planned not to arrest petty shoplifters Conservative MP Michael Ellis said it would be 'akin to a looters" charter' Plans by police in London not to arrest shoplifters who take goods worth less than £50 have been scrapped after being branded a "looters" charter" by shopkeepers. Police in Hammersmith and Fulham - home to the Westfield shopping centre, Britain's worst shoplifting hotspot - said that the radical scheme would allow them to focus on more serious offences. Officers told businesses and town hall bosses they should deal with low-level crimes themselves rather than calling 999. Crime hotspot: Westfield Shopping Centre in White City, west London, where police were planning to drop arrests on small-time shoplifters But representatives of the West London council and retailers reacted with fury. Greg Smith, deputy leader at Hammersmith and Fulham Council, said: "Anyone who steals is a criminal - full stop. They will face the full force of the law in our borough. Conservative MP Michael Ellis, who sits on the Home Affairs Select Committee, added: "Such a policy would be akin to a looters" charter." Scotland Yard admitted that a sergeant in the borough had made the suggestion during a meeting with council officials and business leaders. A pilot scheme was due to take place across Hammersmith and Fulham and would have meant shop assistants and security guards apprehending suspected shoplifters with less than £50 worth of goods themselves rather than calling for police assistance. Vulnerable: The plans meant that shops would be left to deal with their own suspected thieves But the Metropolitan Police insisted this was not official force policy and dismissed the plan as unworkable. Mr Smith added: "We are pleased that the local police have rejected this barmy idea." In last week's report on crime hotspots, we said that Judkin Court in Cardiff had a high level of drugs offences. In fact, the crimes were recorded at the nearby Cardiff Bay police station, when offenders were arrested and found to have drugs on them. We also said an airport in Belfast had high levels of violence but the offences in fact related to nearby Queens Road.