‘Dodgy’ shops handling criminal cash targeted by new unit

“Dodgy” retail outlets such as vape stores, barbers, mini-marts and sweet shops suspected of being used to launder £1bn of criminal money will be targeted by a new specialist unit, the government has said.

A £20m National Crime Agency cell will run and coordinate investigations and raids into businesses suspected of acting as fronts for gangsters, the Home Office said. The NCA and police forces in Greater Manchester, the West ­Midlands, Kent and Essex will recruit 75 officers to boost the effort.

Labour vowed to crack down on “dodgy” outlets such as US candy shops in its general election manifesto, amid investigations into tax evasion and the sale of counterfeit goods.

The move comes as Reform and the Tories blame Labour for a decline on UK high streets, as household brands collapse and shoplifting rises.

Trading standards will receive an extra £6m to bolster the response to sham businesses in at-risk local authorities, according to the latest announcement. New officer training will be rolled out to identify suspicious businesses, strengthen compliance and boost enforcement.

The cash will come from a £30m pot put aside by the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, in last November’s budget.

Improving shopping precincts was the third most important local issue for voters in a recent YouGov poll. Photograph: Linda Nylind/The Guardian

There is growing concern that many such businesses act as a front for money laundering, tax fraud and illegal work.

The NCA estimates at least £12bn of criminal cash is generated in the UK each year, with £1bn laundered through high street businesses such as mini-marts, barber shops, vape stores and sweet shops. Some businesses are also connected to the sale of fake goods, tax evasion, illegal working and illegal drug supply.

As many as half of convenience stores and vape retailers in some areas are estimated to have links with organised crime, according to trading standards, while up to a third of American candy stores and one in four takeaways in specific areas are suspected of being a front for criminal activity.