New laws to extend Sunday trading of large retailers are “confusing” and “open to abuse” a supermarket chief executive has said.
Sainsbury’s boss Mike Coupe has become the first major retailer to oppose the new laws, which would allow larger stores to open for longer on Sundays.
The government wants local authorities to have the power to extend opening hours depending on local opinions, but Coupe said this could lead to one side of a high street being open later on a Sunday while the other side is closed.
“At the moment it could happen that you draw a line around an Asda store and that could open and nothing else can,” he said.
“The laws at the moment are open to interpretation and abuse. There’s a lot of complexity in the way it’s being framed. Anything that starts to introduce a level of complexity at whatever level makes it more challenging. I want to see a legally enforceable definition of the zone, otherwise we could end up with all types of Spanish practice.'
Industry body the British Retail Consortium and other trade unions have also voiced opposition to the proposed rules, saying that they are too complex.
And the Independent reported that analysts have suggested that part of the reason Sainsbury’s would be against extended hours on Sundays because that would increase competition for the Sainsbury’s Local stores, which can already open longer if they are smaller than 3,000 sq ft.
“The current rules work and is a happy British compromise. There’s no customer demand for it or colleague demand for it,” Coupe added.
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