All of the the UK’s major supermarkets including Tesco, Sainsbury’s, and Aldi could soon be granted longer Sunday opening hours, as the government revisits the possibility of relaxing long-standing trading restrictions. Although talks are still in the early stages, Treasury sources have indicated that extended Sunday trading hours are reportedly being explored as part of a wider effort to ease tensions over proposed increases to business rates for large retailers. The potential shake-up comes after senior executives from the UK’s biggest retailers met with Chancellor Rachel Reeves earlier this week.
During the meeting, supermarket bosses 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. Under legislation passed earlier this year, Reeves has the power to raise the business rates multiplier by up to 10p for large premises.
The goal is to use the additional revenue to offer relief to smaller shops and hospitality venues but big retailers argue they are being unfairly penalised.
To offset the impact, ministers are now exploring ways to support larger businesses, one being the controversial idea of changing Sunday trading laws.
Currently in England and Wales, large stores over 3,000 sq ft are only allowed to open for a maximum of six consecutive hours on Sundays, between 10am and 6pm.
This means most supermarkets and large stores open from 10am to 4pm or from 11am to 5pm on Sundays.
A 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.
“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.”