Morning:
6°c
One of Damilola Taylor's killers was back behind bars today - only 16 days after being released from jail. Ricky Preddie (pictured left) was recalled to prison last night after breaching the terms of his parole
More...
Christmas Eve store hours row
Last updated at 12:37pm on 23.12.06
Do you think Sunday trading hours should be extended?
Church leaders have condemned big stores which plan to bend Sunday trading laws tomorrow.
Thousands of branches will be staying open for an hour longer than the legal six-hour maximum to squeeze the last penny of Christmas spending out of shoppers.
More Christmas stories here:
• Pictures: Christmas around the world
• Pictures: The blizzard that never was
• White Christmases happen just eight times a lifetime
• Charlotte Church 'most wanted carol singer'
• 50,000 may be alone this Christmas
• Jam making pensioner cautioned by police for berry picking theft
They will get round the law by adding 30 minutes of 'browsing' to the start of trading and 30 minutes of 'checking-out time' at the end. Those employing the tactic include Sainsbury's, Asda, Tesco and Marks & Spencer.
Should Sunday trading hours be extended? Tell us in reader comments below
Church of England spokesman Steve Jenkins said: 'It is the workers in the shops we are concerned about, especially on Christmas Eve. They, too are preparing to celebrate Christmas.'
The Bishop of Manchester, the Right Reverend Nigel McCulloch, said: 'Sunday trading hours are meant to provide protection all year round - Christmas included.'
Critics said that, while not technically illegal, the move is clearly against the spirit of the 1994 Sunday Trading Act, brought in to stop the Christian Sabbath becoming just another day.
The stores, many of which have had a poor Christmas so far, are desperate to maximise their share of the £1.14billion predicted to be spent in a last-day rush tomorrow.
The figure, produced by Sainsbury's Bank, works out at £791,667 every minute. Much of it will be on credit.
Big stores normally open from 10am to 4pm on Sundays. Their new tactic will let shoppers start filling their baskets at 9.30am, if they do not pay before 10am. At the end of the day, the 'grace' period to go through the checkouts means they can keep shopping until 3.59pm.
There was also concern that the big stores' greed could badly affect smaller shops, which are not restricted by the Sunday laws. Last-minute Christmas shopping and sales of 'stocking fillers' can be a major part of their annual income.
Stephen Green of Christian Voice said: 'Stores should not be open at all on Sunday.
'They should certainly not be asking staff to work for longer on Christmas Eve. The stores are just chasing as much money as possible. It is a living example of the Lord's warning that you cannot serve God and Mammon.'
C of E spokesman Mr Jenkins said: 'The costs to family life and stability, the health of employees and the contribution of small retailers to community cohesion outweigh any potential benefits.'
Martyn Eden, of the Keep Sunday Special campaign, said: 'It is not breaking the law but it is bending the rules. It is taking trade from small shops. They don't need to do this. They are making enough money anyway.'
The Right Reverend Peter Selby, Bishop of Worcester, said: 'I am against the extension of trading hours.'
John Hannett, general secretary of the shopworkers' union Usdaw, said: 'We regard " browsing time" as outside the spirit of the law. Six hours on a Sunday is a reasonable limit, even on Christmas Eve.
'We would remind everybody in the retail sector it is illegal to sell in the browsing time. People who see it happening should report it to local authority trading standards officers.' One chain sticking to the spirit of the law is Morrisons. None of its stores will open early for 'browsing'.
But the My Sunday My Choice campaign for longer Sunday trading said many customers would be caught out by Christmas Eve closing times.
In a poll last week it found 48 per cent of people planned to go shopping tomorrow but many were unaware of restrictions on store hours.
Retailers everywhere are braced for a weekend rush. Latest figures from the Retail Foot-Fall Index show shopper numbers between Monday and Thursday were almost 25 per cent up on last week.
Reader views (6)
if we were serious about carbon emmissins and footprints (whatever they are?) we would close down on sundays and give us all a break.
- Qwestion, chelmsford uk, 24/12/2009 16:17
Report abuse
Sad, really, the way that the Christian festival of Christmas has become inextricably linked with "shopping"...hard to find that connection in the Gospels!
- Steve R, London, UK, 23/12/2006 16:36
Report abuse
Would these stores be happy if the law was bent, and shoplifters allowed to walk free, I doubt it.
Either one is law abiding or one is not.
Threre are no 'shades of gray' for the Superstore bosses.
- Jonathan Jones, Richmond, 23/12/2006 16:02
Report abuse
This merely seems to be a case of the big stores bending the rules to suit themselves, hardly surprising when you consider that the boards are probably full of MP's moonlighting and a reflection on how corrupt our country seems to be heading.
- D.S.Cumbridge, Peterborough UK, 23/12/2006 14:28
Report abuse
If the staff are willing to work an extra hour then whats the problem? I personally have to work Christmas Eve and I couldn't care less.
- Adam, Grimsby, 23/12/2006 14:24
Report abuse
Life is not just about working and money or buying things. Families need time together. We need to prosecute stores that break the law.
- Stephen Sinclair, chester, uk, 23/12/2006 10:56
Report abuse
