Major supermarkets, including Sainsbury’s, Tesco, and Aldi, could soon be allowed to stay open longer on Sundays as the government reportedly reconsiders relaxing trading restrictions.
Talks are said to be still in the early stages with "no firm plans", but a Treasury source says extending Sunday trading hours has been floated by the Department for Business and Trade as ministers seek to ease tensions over proposed rises to business rates for large retailers. It comes after senior executives from the UK’s biggest retailers met with Rachel Reeves last week and warned the Chancellor that the proposed increase in business rates for properties valued over £500,000 could lead to widespread store closures and job cuts.
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Under legislation passed earlier this year, Ms Reeves has the power to increase the business rates multiplier by up to 10p for large premises.
The Government hopes to use the additional revenue to provide relief to smaller shops and hospitality venues, but big retailers have argued they're being unfairly penalised.
Another source told The Grocer: "The idea of looking again at Sunday trading hours has been raised by Treasury sources as part of a wider discussion over rates reform and measures that could help retailers, but at the moment there are no firm plans – it’s much more a case of people flying kites.
"We’ve been down this path at least three times before and each time we have seen a similar pattern of events and the same outcome.
They added: "There will be some retailers who are strongly in favour of this and others opposed. Under the Conservatives perhaps the deciding factor for the plans not going ahead came from those in the party who wanted Sunday to be kept special.
"With Labour the big fly in the ointment is likely to be the unions," they added.
Under the current rules, in England and Wales large stores over 3,000 sq ft can open for a maximum of six consecutive hours on Sundays, between 10am and 6pm.
Some large shops are excluded from the rules, including airport and railway station outlets, service station outlets, registered pharmacies selling only medicinal products and medical and surgical appliances and others.
Most supermarkets and large stores open from 10am to 4pm or from 11am to 5pm on Sundays.
A HM Treasury spokesperson said: “This pro-business government is creating a fairer business rates system to protect the high street, support investment, and level the playing field and we intend to introduce a permanently lower business rates multiplier for retail properties from next year”.
The Department for Business and Trade has been approached for comment.
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