Some retailers may raise their prices in Scotland if it becomes independent next year.
The Financial Times has reported that Asda CEO Andy Clarke said: 'A 'Yes' vote in 2014 could result in Scotland being a less attractive investment proposition for business and put further pressure on our costs.'
BBC Business editor Robert Peston said in a blog: “Scottish people eat relatively less fresh food than the English, and fresh food is much more expensive to transport and store. So it is relatively more costly to provide fresh food in Scotland.”
Peston said that although at the moment retailers have a pan-UK pricing policy that accounts for higher costs in Scotland, it is likely that this would change after independence.
An executive at one of the top four retailers told the Financial Times the company would treat an independent Scotland as an international market and act accordingly by raising prices.
“The costs of distribution are much higher in Scotland but at the moment that gets absorbed by the UK business,” the spokesperson told the Financial Times.
Dalton Philips, chief executive of Morrisons, told the Financial Times that a new regulatory environment could potentially affect consumer pricing. He asked: “Why should the English and Welsh consumer subsidise this increased cost of doing business in Scotland?”
However, the Scottish government has said there is no reason for retail prices to rise if a ‘Yes’ vote is reached next year.
