Business legislation, Sunday trading, stakeholders and the Olympics

The Sunday Trading Act was passed 17 years ago. Before that most shops were not allowed to open on Sundays, which is a situation students will not be able to imagine. The law changed the culture around how the spend the day, speeding the development of shopping malls as destinations with coffee shops, restaurants, cinemas and other leisure facilities which encourage family outings for a whole day. According to Verdict market research: - 53% of people regularly shop on a Sunday - An estimated 14% of consumer expenditure takes place on Sunday’s, including online shopping - Sunday is eBay’s busiest day - 421,000 more people work Sundays than pre-1994

But large shops over 280 square metres in England and Wales are still restricted to six hours of continuous trading between 10:00 and 18:00 on Sundays. However one prediction for this week’s Budget is that the Chancellor will announce a temporary lifting of this restriction during the Olympics and Paralympics this summer. According to the Press Association, without a change in the law, the three biggest souvenir shops at the Olympic village itself in Stratford, east London, would be forced to close their doors to spectators. It is also hoped that this would encourage visitors to London to take more advantage of late-night shopping in the West End and generally boost retailing and leisure industry incomes, and that people throughout England and Wales will visit supermarkets, garden centres and DIY stores on the lighter summer evenings.

Some stakeholders will be delighted, but others are bound to oppose the plan. Those will include unions representing shop workers and religious bodies; there will be concern that although the move is temporary it may lead to a permanent change in the law and the Treasury is expected to closely monitor its effects and a permanent move has not been ruled out if it proves a success. On the other hand, such a change may lead to more jobs: Mr Osborne has said that in the Budget he wanted “to ensure it is the working person who gets most support”.

Other changes to legislation are planned for the period of the Olympics. Deliveries to shops and businesses normally have to be done during the day as London’s councils have strict restrictions on night-time deliveries to prevent residents being disturbed. However a huge influx of visitors means the need for goods will be high so London councils may relax the overnight rules and allow deliveries to take place throughout the night; Westminster Council has already confirmed the relaxation and other boroughs may follow. The Freight Transport Association which represents hauliers and lorry companies supports this idea in order to ensure that they can carry out their business, which will ensure that residents continue to receive the goods they rely on - but at the cost of more disturbance. Martin Low, transport commissioner at Westminster Council, said: “It may mean some deliveries taking place at night but that’s just adjusting to make sure we have a fantastic Olympics. It’s about trying to strike a balance so residents get a reasonable night’s sleep.”